Bloodhound, the Dog Miraculous Holder
by ApiphobicDalmatianLass
Summary: "In the daytime, I'm Alexa. Just a simple girl in a new and foreign country. People say, a new beginning can change someone, for either good or bad. But this changed me more than anybody could ever think. Aside of having the greatest friends ever, I also have a secret: I'm a Miraculous Holder, and I protect the city of Paris." SEASON 2 AU!
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hey there, folks! ADL is back, this time with a multi-chapter story for you! I'm terribly sorry for the long delay, but school was a nightmare and I lacked inspiration, but last day is tomorrow and then _finally_ off to summer vacation :D  
**

 **But before you start reading, first a big shout-out to _corejudith_ , _Malena M. Salas_ , _Krystal S.L_ , _SerinaAZ_ , _niyatb_ , _Sadomasochist2716_ , _R . Rk_ , _hicat23_ ,** **_The Mad Heroine_ ,** **_LadyWoudy_ and _MN2703_ who favorited my first story: Thank you _so_ much, you guys! You've no idea how much this means to me. I really hope this is not the last time I hear from you :D  
**

 **to _Melancholy's Sunshine_** **: You're very welcome, my friend. And thank _you_ for your first review :3  
**

 **to _FicsFromAnAnbuNin_ : Thanks, glad you think so :)**

 **to _RicardianScholar Clark-Weasley_ : Thank you so much again :3**

 ** **And just so you won't get confused: The story starts a week after the Collector incident, so Marinette is already acquainted with Master Fu. I'll include the other season 2 episodes as well, but with a few changes so it will fit in.  
****

 **Well now, this aside, enjoy the first chapter!  
**

* * *

In a little apartment, somewhere in the 21st Arrondissement of Paris, a teenage girl was hidden under the covers of her bed. The room she was in was painted in a baby blue color and filled with mostly white furniture: a white bed, a white wardrobe, white shelves, a white desk and a white drawer. The only thing not white was the little piano between the two latter things. On the desk were a black lamp and laptop with speakers, and also a lot of books. On the drawer stood a small TV and a Wii console beside it.

The clock on the desk read 11.30 p.m., it was nighttime. But the constant tossing and turning indicated that the girl just couldn't find it in herself to fall asleep. Groaning exasperatedly, she slipped from under the blanket and started to put on slippers on her bare feet.

The girl had messy shoulder-length dark-brown hair and black bangs on her forehead. Her face was rather pale and her eyes, though glazed with grogginess, were amber colored. Above her lip was a little beauty mark.

Running her right hand through her hair, she slowly stood up. Her body was a bit scrawny and she wore dark-blue pajamas with long sleeves.

 _Maybe some tea will help me snooze off._ She thought tiredly.

She left her room quietly and began walking through the empty hallway, her ears softly listening to nonexistent sounds, reassuring her that she was the only one awake.

* * *

The kitchen was small with lots of cupboards, a huge fridge, a table with chairs and a sink. Things like a toaster, a kettle and a microwave were there as well.

The girl put on the kettle and reached into one of the cupboards, pulling out a cup.

The faintly seen letters on the cup formed a word: Alexa. That was the girl's name.

She took out a teabag from another cupboard and waited until the kettle completely stopped boiling.

Pouring the hot water into the cup, Alexa sat down on a chair and let it steam for a while before sipping carefully. Her parents will probably kill her if they found her awake at this time, but she couldn't make herself care. There were other things she was way more worried about, tomorrow was one of these.

Tomorrow was Monday. Her first day in a new school, a new environment. And while others were excited about a new start, Alexa was scared.

She knew she was different, but she also knew that she couldn't hide her true colors. Ninth class was already a nightmare, but now she was entering tenth class. The last year of collège. _The irony._ Alexa thought with a wry smile. Because after that she would be entering lycée, in other words, she would probably start anew again.

But that wasn't even her biggest worry.

Somewhere on her desk stood a little box, waiting to be opened by someone.

Due to her needed help to reconstitute their new home, Alexa still didn't get a chance to take a look inside. She was very curious, but simultaneously, something made her kind of nervous about this box. It looked like a simple jewelry chest, but at the same time, it appeared rather old and mystical.

Alexa shivered as she took another sip of her tea. The whole situation of how she even found it was rather mystical.

 _ **Flashback**_

 _It was her last day here. The last day before she had to leave her home for good. This night they would part for another country. Alexa practically begged her parents to take one last stroll around the town. Fortunately, they accepted._

 _After wandering around for a few hours she halted in front of a mall that was currently under mild reconstruction. Alexa sighed sadly. She won't be seeing the final - maybe even better - outcome, but something within her told her to explore the place a bit._

 _So, following her curiosity, she went inside._

 _After maneuvering herself through the_ _ironically deserted interior, she found herself in an unlit hall, having reached a dead end._ Great… All way for nothing. _Alexa grumbled inwardly._

 _She was about to turn back, when she saw something shining. The girl blinked once, then twice, but the glow was still there. It was faint, but bright enough for her to see. Her curiosity sense tingled, and her feet began moving on their own. Something about this glow attracted her, and she was bound to find out what._

 _The glow came from a dirt wall, a little sunshine ray falling onto a small object._

 _Carefully rubbing the soil from it, she saw a little wooden chest. It was dark reddish-brown and octagon-shaped. Its lid had a red design, a circle with patterns in the middle surrounded by wavy lines as the edge._

 _Alexa's eyes shined and her pupils widened from the sheer excitement bubbling inside her, making her tremble. She found herself carefully grasping the object and tugging it gently, though strongly, out of the dirt._

 _Watching it lying delicately in her hand, Alexa was completely enchanted by her little founding, caressing it before slowly reaching up to open the lid._

 ** _Riiiinnnnnnng!_**

 _Alexa jumped in fright, almost dropping the box in process. Her phone just had to ring_ _ **now**_ _, hadn't it? Annoyed, she reached into her pocket of her jacket and answered it._

" _Hello? … … … Hey Mom." A worried voice tuned from the other speaker. "Yeah yeah, I'll come home now. … … …" Alexa moaned loudly. "Do I have to?" The voice answered rather harshly, making her flinch. "Okay okay, sorry. … … … Yeah, I'm on my way. … … … Love you too, bye." she hung up._

 _Taking one last glance at the chest, Alexa carefully slid it into her other pocket._

I'll take care of you later. _She thought determined before running out of the building._

 _ **End of Flashback**_

Alexa chuckled. Who would have thought that a little walk would lead her to such a treasure? It still seemed so surreal, but it **had** happened, and Alexa couldn't wait to find out what her find was.

Glancing at the kitchen clock, she gasped quietly. 12.59 a.m.! It was technically the next day already and she was still awake.

She had to go to bed and sleep. _NOW!_

Gulping down the rest of her tea, Alexa stood up and put the cup away before once again walking through the hallway to her room. She quickly traded the slippers for a pair of socks before slipping under the covers of her bed once again.

Closing her eyes, she could hear the faint sound of the wind blowing through the window. The sound was calm and gentle to her. And after a while, she finally succumbed to a deep sleep.

* * *

 **A/N: That's it, folks! Don't forget to R &R!**


	2. Enter New Friends and Foes

**A/N: Hey folks! ADL is back with the next chapter! A new day, a new beginning for our brunette. Let's see what the day holds for her.**

 **Once again, big shout-out to _SpiderDom321_ and **_**TwilightKingA5L**_ **,** **especially for you, _SpiderDom_. You favoriting _me_ really made my day :3 And nice to see you liked my first story as well. I wanted to start with something no one has ever read before to make a nice entrance, and I guess I succeeded :D  
**

 **to _your_ review: Thanks, glad you think so!**

 **And actually, it's the Dog Miraculous, Bloodhound is the name Alexa takes on when she becomes a superheroine. Sorry if I'm being kind of a smartass here, just wanted to clarify it :')**

 **to** ** _Koko da Cat (Guest)_ : Thank you :)  
**

 **to _black-hoax_ : Thanks. I can only hope it corresponds to your expectations :D**

 **One last thing: I know that as per the episode 'Sapotis', the Dog Miraculous is stored with the others in the jewerly box, but in this AU story, it got lost way before the Guardians' temple burnt down.**

 **Ah well, on to the second chapter!**

* * *

It was 7.00 a.m. Alexa was laying in her bed and listening to the music coming from her alarm clock.

 _Ah… nothing's better than radio tunes early in the morning._ She sighed satisfied. She then began slowly stretching, her head nodding to the rhythm of the music. School didn't start 'til eight, so she had plenty of time to get ready.

Fifteen minutes later, the girl began to dress up. She put on light-blue jeans with a black belt around the waist, the belt hidden by a simple black hoodie. That was her usual clothing.

Grabbing her blue backpack, Alexa dragged it out of her room into a corner of the hall before entering the kitchen.

There, another woman sat on a chair and was drinking coffee. She was in her late thirties, dressed in a white, sequined shirt and dark-blue jeans. She had brown hair which was lighter than Alexa's, almost caramel. Her eyes were green-grey and she looked very tired.

Alexa threw her a soft smile.

"Morning mom, rough night?" she asked.

The woman only nodded. Alexa sighed and gave her a little hug, which she gladly reciprocated.

Alexa then made herself some cereals with milk, quickly eating before putting the bowl away and rushing into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Looking at herself in the mirror, she could see little dark bags under her eyes. She appeared to be have had lesser sleep than she originally thought. _Ah well…_ Alexa shrugged and swiftly washed her face.

Leaving the bathroom, she saw her mother next to the front door. She held a lunch box and a fresh bottle of water in her hands.

"Thank you!" Alexa replied, taking the supplies and putting them into her backpack. She then put on some white sneakers with three blue stripes and a dark-blue jacket.

"Do you have everything for school?" her mother asked her.

The girl pondered. History? Check. French? Check. English? Check. Chemistry, mathematics and geography? Check, check and check. Yep, she had everything!

Her nod satisfied her mother. "Good. Have a nice first day!"

"Thanks mom. Bye!" the girl smiled. Taking a deep breath, she walked out of the apartment.

* * *

Monday was always, according to Alexa, the busiest day of the week. People rushing here and there, shops opening again after a short weekend and cars and buses driving across town non-stop. Thankfully, Alexa didn't need to take the bus. She could calmly walk with headphones in her ears to listen to some more music.

A while ago, she found out her new school being just a few streets away from home. 'Collège Françoise Dupont' was the name. Alexa heard that the name was a tribute to Fantô… Fanette… **_argh!_** To some fictive superhero's alter-ego name! She couldn't remember whose anymore.

Anyway, she could already see the school from afar. It was tan with a slate blue cobbled roof, and the building appeared to be three stories tall. Alexa saw various people walking inside, students and teachers.

She took a look on her watch. 7.45 a.m. Fifteen minutes left before school started. Pulling the plugs out of her ears, the brunette put her phone away and proceeded to enter.

… Before something bumped into her rather harshly.

Alexa turned around to see a girl with honey-blond hair tied in a ponytail, dressed in a yellow long-sleeved jacket over a white shirt with black stripes around the waist. The girl didn't even bat an eye on her, simply walking away in a flaunting manner.

Behind her trotted another girl with orange hair and glasses, wearing a white long-sleeved dress shirt underneath a purple and blue argyle vest with a dark-grey bow around her neck.

She threw Alexa an apologetic look - at least it seemed like one to her - before turning her attention back to the blonde.

Alexa simply raised an eyebrow. _What just happened?_

Her curiosity sense suddenly began to tingle. She didn't know why, but something didn't feel right there.

Following the blonde as quiet as she could, Alexa saw her approaching another student. And to her utter shock, the blonde, too, bumped into them roughly, making them drop everything they held in their hands, mostly sheets of paper, on the ground. As if it wasn't bad enough, the blonde even laughed at them - she swore her ears even picked up some taunting - before flipping up her ponytail and walking away.

Alexa felt her blood boiling. _That brat has nerves…_ she seethed inwardly. The person seemed to have recovered from the bump, but began panicking after spotting the mess, trying to collect all things in a rushing way.

Alexa's heart went out to them. They needed help, and she was going to give it!

Rushing to the despairing student, she knelt down.

"Need a hand?" she asked the person, making them flinch then turning around to face her.

Now Alexa could finally take a closer look. It was another girl with blackish-blue hair tied in pigtails and beautiful bluebell eyes. She wore a dark-grey blazer with rolled up sleeves, the inside was lined in white with pink polka dots and had black trimming. Underneath was a white t-shirt with black stitching and a design below the collar which had pink flowers and black leaves.

Without waiting for the teenager's answer, Alexa bent down to collect a few things lying around. The girl snapped out of her shock once again and continued to pick up the papers scattered around. In no time everything was sorted and Alexa gave the rest to the blackette.

She threw the brunette a grateful smile. "Oh thank you, thank you! You're a lifesaver!"

"Nah, I'm not." Alexa blushed. "I'm just glad I could help." She then scowled into the direction where the blonde disappeared just a minute ago. "Who the heck is that snobby brat?"

Her venomous tone made the girl flinch. But she quickly regained herself and shared Alexa's expression.

"That is Chloé Bourgeois, the meanest, brattiest and most selfish girl in whole Paris. Her father is the city's mayor, so she gets away with almost anything you throw at her. She does everything she can to crush and humiliate the other students, including me. Not to mention, she is also very spoiled and conceited." The black-haired crossed her arms in a peeved manner.

Alexa copied her movement. "Whoa, she's worse than I already thought." She gave the girl a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry for that, really. Maybe if I saw that coming, I could've prevented it somehow."

"Don't be." The girl brushed her off. "That you came over and helped me is already generous enough."

She threw Alexa another smile, flustering the brunette a bit. She wasn't used to getting such high attention from anybody, but when she received it, it made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

"Aww, you're welcome." she chuckled sheepishly while playing with her hair.

"What's your name?" the girl asked her suddenly.

This question startled her a bit. That came out of nowhere. "… Alexa." She answered eventually. "My name is Alexa."

"Nice to meet you, Alexa." The girl said. "I'm Marinette."

"Nice to meet you too, Marinette." Alexa replied happily.

Suddenly, the school bell was heard throughout the school. Alexa's head automatically jerked to her watch. Eight o'clock! Marinette seemed to notice that too, because both screamed simultaneously. "OH NO! WE'RE LATE!"

The girls then bolted into the building, Marinette unexpectedly grabbing Alexa's arm and dashing through the already empty hallway.

While she was dragged along, multiple thoughts rushed through the brunette's head. _First day, and I'm already late! – Which class am I assigned to? – My parents are gonna kill me! – Marinette's late because of me! – I'm such a dawdler!_

Before she could continue dwelling in her panic, Marinette pulled her around the corner into a classroom. Every student was already in there, including a very familiar looking, arrogant blonde. _Great…_ _She just_ had _to be in this class…_ Alexa groaned inwardly.

The teacher, a woman with reddish-orange hair dressed in a light blue jacket with a teal collared shirt, looked very displeased at the late arrivers, especially at the blackette though. "Marinette, if you want to be a good class representative, you need to be **on time**!"

Marinette flinched. "I'm sorry, Miss Bustier."

Alexa's eyes widened. Marinette is the class representative?!

While the woman continued to lecture Marinette, who hung her head in shame, the brunette felt even more awful. Because of her stupid lingering the girl not only came late, but also got _accused_ of coming late.

Her ears picked up a faint, disdainful snigger from across the classroom, _no doubt coming from_ _that_ damned _wannabe-diva…_

Alexa growled. Not on her watch!

"Miss Bustier! Please!" she interrupted loudly, drawing everyone's attention to her. Alexa blushed slightly, surprised by her own boldness, but quickly regained her posture. "Please, don't scold her! It's not Marinette's fault! _I'm_ the one to blame!"

Marinette threw her a _What are you doing?!_ look, but the brunette ignored it. "Somebody bumped into her and I just helped her picking up her stuff. While doing so, we were getting acquainted with each other… and because of me we lost sight of time."

Alexa smiled softly at the blackette. "Marinette could have just run off without me, but she didn't. She pulled me along. She cared. Even though she barely knows me."

She turned back to the still baffled teacher. "So please, don't punish her. Marinette is a great girl; she doesn't deserve that."

"Oh PUH-lease!" the voice of the annoying blonde boomed through the classroom. Almost everyone's attention was immediately drawn to her. "Do you really wanna waste your time defending 'Maritrash'? Like you said, she barely even knows you." She crossed her arms and gave the brunette a smug expression. "So why do you think it would matter if you stand up for her?"

Alexa looked blankly at her for a moment, before copying her posture with a glare. "Who asked for **your** opinion?"

* * *

The reactions she received very various: shocked, impressed, etc., but nothing topped the look of indignation that Chloé wore once these words left Alexa's lips. She then glowered at her, claiming she was the mayor's daughter, she would make her life miserable; the whole package, but the brunette simply brushed her of and proceeded to explain Miss Bustier about her status.

A quick presentation was then held off of her German origin and Russian kin, her hobbies, her favorite subjects and other things. She also explained that her family moved to France because her father got transferred here to work as an advanced computer technician.

After that, she was seated next to Marinette and her neighbor, another girl - gee, she sure was meeting a lot of girls today - with reddish-brown hair. She was tan-skinned and had hazel eyes covered by glasses. She wore a white tank top underneath a plaid flannel shirt with white, orange and purple stripes.

From what Alexa had been told, her name was Alya and she was Marinette's best friend, who was rather peppy and more energetic. Alya also was not only the class deputy but the administrator of the popular Ladyblog - the blog was about Paris' two superheroes Alexa and her family heard about - and her mother was the head chef of a fancy hotel called 'Le Grand Paris'.

… Where the blonde snob apparently resided, _shudder._

And Marinette, who remained rather inactive after the whole ordeal, was revealed to be half French and half Chinese, her parents owning a bakery which was located in 12 Rue Gotlib - coincidently, Alexa lived in 10 Rue; _they were neighbors!_ \- and her adoring fashion, having a knack for designing and sewing. This both worried and intrigued the brunette, the former because she had absolutely **no** taste in clothes and appearance, and the latter because she had never seen a fashion designer up close.

But the moment video games were mentioned, Alexa immediately got excited. For she **adored** video games and got happy that somebody else shared her interest. _Maybe I'll get the chance to play with her someday…_ she beamed to herself.

Alexa also met two boys who sat in front of them, one of them being Nino. He had dark skin, short dark-brown hair with a plain red cap atop and golden brown eyes covered by glasses. The boy wore a short-sleeved blue shirt with an eye design a black pupil, white sclera, dark-grey upper eyelid with lashes, and light blue lower lid. Additionally, Nino had a lot of neon armbands on his right wrist.

She instantly liked his enthusiastic nature, especially his sense of justice which made him a great guy to have around. Also particularly were the worn headphones around his neck, to which he explained that he was a DJ and loved attending as one at parties.

The other boy was Adrien. He had blond hair and light green eyes. He wore a white button-down shirt with an upturned collar and sleeves rolled up above his elbow, which he kept unbuttoned. Underneath, he wore a black shirt with a yellow, olive green, bright green, dark-green, and periwinkle stripe each on his chest.

He was the son of the famous fashion designer Gabriel Agreste, whom Marinette idolized, and also a model. Besides of being homeschooled beforehand - which intrigued Alexa because homeschooling in Germany is illegal - he also took fencing, piano and Chinese lessons and was overall a nice and polite boy. And despite his rich status, he wanted to be treated like everyone else in this class. _Modest and generous… he's definitely no second Chloé._ Alexa nodded in delight.

After that, school went by fairly quick and they were all dismissed. It was 4.10 p.m. and Alexa watched as Marinette and Alya waved goodbye to the boys before glancing in her direction.

"I must say, that was pretty cool, girl." Alya gave the brunette an impressed grin. "But you do know that Chloé will now hold a deep grudge towards you?"

"Meh, that was expectable." Alexa shrugged nonchalantly. "Besides, I had a girl in my old school who couldn't stand me either for whatsoever reason, so I'm kinda used to it."

Alya laughed. "Yep, you're definitely cool." she grinned. Alexa couldn't help but blush a little. Nobody had ever called her cool before, so this was foreign territory. Marinette noticed that and turned to the other brunette.

"Alya stop it, you're flustering her." she said sternly.

The still laughing girl stopped after a moment. "Oh yeah. Sorry." Alya said sheepishly. She then perked up again. "You know, for someone who comes from a different country, your French is practically flawless."

"You really think so?" Alexa asked flattered. "French was always one of my favorite languages, next to English. I practiced both of them every day to perfect my vocabulary and grammar."

"That's totally neat!" Alya said. She sighed when she looked at her watch. "Well, I guess I'll go now. I need to babysit my younger siblings today as my parents are both busy." She started to walk away. "See ya tomorrow!"

"Bye Alya!" The two remaining girls waved at her retreating form. Marinette then turned to Alexa again. "Alexa, about earlier, why did you defend me? Not that I'm ungrateful, but… why?"

The brunette grimaced a bit. The stupefied look on the blackette's face has remained throughout the whole school day, even during lunch break it never disappeared, so that question was kinda expected.

After what felt like an eternity, she looked at Marinette again, who still patiently waited for an answer. The little smile on her face showed that whatever answer Alexa threw at her, she wouldn't judge her. Something told the brunette that she already experienced something like that.

"… It wasn't fair." she finally said. Ignoring the surprised look from Marinette, she continued. "It was Chloé who made you drop your stuff. It was me who kept us both back. You were completely innocent, Marinette. And I didn't say anything about Chloé because it would come across as snitching." she gave her a dry look. "For teachers, tattletales are _always_ complicit." she looked down frowning. "… You shouldn't be punished for something you aren't responsible for."

Silence. Alexa clenched her eyes shut, silently awaiting the rejection, only to feel a gentle touch on her shoulder. Glancing up, she saw a pair of bluebell eyes with the softest look she had ever seen.

"I don't know what to say." Marinette murmured awed. "Thank you. That was very brave and kind of you, Alexa."

Alexa gaped a little. "You… you don't think it's weird?"

Marinette shook her head. "Not at all! Quite the opposite. That was the most selfless thing I've ever seen. Only a few are courageous enough to stand up to Chloé." She smiled widely at the shocked teen. "The world needs more people like you."

Alexa felt her mind short-circuit. That was _so_ foreign territory right now! All this niceness, all this supporting, all this… acceptance. She felt herself tremble gleefully. That was simply _too much_ for her.

She refocused herself when she felt Marinette's hand off her shoulder. "Can I somehow return the favor?"

"Marinette, you don't need t–" Alexa stopped herself when she saw the pleading look on the designer's face. She scratched her head awkwardly. "Weeeeeeell, if you insist… uh… I'm currently still unpacking, but… care to give me a tour 'round town tomorrow? I'm still a bit rough around the edges."

An excited nod later, they both started to go home. It was pretty quiet for a while…

"… Hey, Marinette?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you like Adrien?"

" _Meep!_ "

* * *

 **A/N: Not bad for a first day in school, huh? Like always, don't forget to R &R!**


	3. Of Kwamis and Miraculouses

**A/N: Hey there, folks. Not a lot since I posted last time, huh? I admit, it _is_ kinda disappointing that this story's not as popular as my first, but hey, it's better than nothing, right? :)  
**

 **The moment everyone was waiting for: Alexa finally opens the mysterious chest! She even gets a bit of a history lesson as a bonus (I just hope I didn't reveal too much :'( )**

 **to _SpiderDom321_ : Yeah, Chloé is such a hussy :(**

 **Thanks! In my opinion, the best way to make new friends is by offering people your help with something so you can make a good first impression :)  
**

 **That's exactly what I'm getting at: Alexa will learn through them how to be 'herself' and they'll eventually become besties :D**

 **Dude, you just never stop raising my spirits. Whenever I read your reviews, they make me smile so much. And they dampen the disappointment :)  
**

 **I also read a bit of your OC story. While there are some spelling mistakes (as well as a few punctuation errors) the plot itself is amazing! Mason is kind of a mix of Marinette and Adrien, the former because of his pacifism, shyness and sense of justice, the latter because of same reasons plus being a celebrity. And even though the Miraculouses seem to be kind of anathema to Mason and his friends, the Sensationals sound very interesting too. Can't wait to read more :D  
**

 **Now then mates, third chapter ahead!**

* * *

Lying on her bed, Alexa was deep in thought. Her first day was quite eventful. First the bumping incident, then the late-coming, then the defense in front of everyone completed with Chloé throwing a tantrum, the latter being the icing on the cake. But something told her to be careful with the blonde from now on. There was gossip that her father was very abusive in regard of his precious daughter. But something as trivial as her counter was still okay, so no worries for now.

Her mind then switched to Marinette. That girl… She was the nicest person Alexa had ever met. She accepted her flaw and even _thanked_ her for that! Alya was pretty supportive herself, as well as some of the others in class. But Marinette…

Alexa sighed to herself. She really shouldn't dwell in it so much. Maybe Marinette was naturally that sweet to everyone. She could have been uncomfortable with the brunette's antics inwardly, but didn't want to be disrespectful. Heck, she could have been terrified for God's sake! The blackette's gobsmacked face was a major evidence for that.

 _Argh!_ Why did she always have to be such a pessimist?!

It reminded her so much of her past.

 ** _Flashback_**

 _In school, a group of girls were chatting among each other about several things. Not too far away stood a timidly looking, brunette girl, carefully approaching the group. One of the girls perked up and faced the female, the latter twitching._

 _"H-hey, h-how is it going?" the girl asked nervously. Her answer was several raised eyebrows, making her even more uneasy. "I-I-I was just wondering i-if I c-could join the talk? I-i-if you don't m-mind, I mean."_

 _Silence. The girls gave each other awkward glances before simultaneously backing away from the timid girl, then walking away altogether._

 _The brunette simply stood there, feeling completely dejected._

 ** _Another Flashback_**

 _The girl entered her class, everyone already there. When they noticed her, she tensed up._

 _"Well, well…" one of the boys, a blond, smirked. "Once again late, eh Ali?"_

 _The female felt her face heat up as she wordlessly sat down on her place. When the girl talked to the teacher after lesson ended, she felt something hit her head. A piece of paper which read 'Crawler :P'. She glared behind her, the same boy from earlier blowing a silent raspberry at the female. Her scowl did nothing else than making him leer even more as he swaggered out of class._

Jerk… _she growled._

 ** _Another Flashback_**

 _The class was playing a game of dodgeball in the gym. A brunette girl from the opposing team tried to shoot our female off when the latter simply grabbed the flying ball and countered with a throw of her own. The ball bounced off the opponent and she was put on the edge._

 _"Cheater." she grumbled when passing the girl._

 _"Pot kettle." She sassed back, enraging the brunette even more. The former was right because she snatched the ball from over the edge when nobody was looking._

 _When one of the opposing team had the ball, the brunette smirked evilly as she saw our girl coming her way and inconspicuously put out a leg, making the latter trip. The female fell down with a hard thud, the ball came flying and hit her butt, laughter voicing from all around her._

 _When she came back to her sense, she saw the brunette looking away innocently and whistling to herself._

 _The girl felt her blood boil. "You did that on purpose!" she pointed accusingly at the opponent._

 _"And what if I did?" the brunette asked smugly. "It wouldn't matter, anyway. You're out, so shoo!"_

 _The girl felt herself tremble from fury._ How dare she! _She was_ _ **so**_ _about to say something threatening…_

 _"Alexa!" Said female turned around to see a black-haired boy walking her way. "Stop arguing and go on the edge!"_

 _"But that's not fair!" the girl complained. "She made me trip!"_

 _"Just leave the field Alexa, and stop fussing!" the boy yelled exasperatedly._

 _The female felt her heart thumping furiously. She felt like throwing a tantrum, but knew better than that. She was already humiliated in front of everyone. Shoulders sagging, she went to the edge, all the time glaring daggers at the smug brunette._

 ** _End of Flashback_**

Alexa clenched her hands into fists. What did she do to deserve all of that? Why did they had to be so cruel to her? All she ever wanted was a friend. Someone to be there for her when she was down. Someone to spend time with her when she was lonely.

Someone… who she could trust.

Alexa shook her head violently. It didn't matter anymore! She was far away now, far away from these jerks. And she'll never go back again.

Nodding to herself, she stood up to leave and get herself some tea before her eyes landed on the still unopened box on her desk.

 _The box!_ Alexa face-palmed. _I completely forgot about it!_ Her curiosity returned immediately, ditching her last thought. The girl grasped it carefully once again and looked at it. The chest was still in the same condition Alexa left it in her room.

A last time reassuring herself that she was alone, she took the lid and finally opened it.

… only to shriek loudly and immediately drop the box.

A glowing ball came from it, spinning around the terrified teen who stood paralyzed on the ground.

When the glow disappeared, it revealed a little flying, humanoid, light-brown figure with white mark around the mouth, between its grey eyes and on the chest. It had floppy ears and a curved-up tail. A pink tongue was tangling from a happily panting mouth.

It howled in a squeaky voice and began to fly around once again. "I'm free! Free! I'm finally free!"

Yapping happily the creature turned to the still frozen girl. "Thank you so much!" it squealed gratefully. "I already thought I would never see the daylights ever again! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!"

After an agonizingly long inner freak-out, Alexa finally came back to her sense and saw the critter still doing its little elated dancing. She blinked twice, then furiously rubbed her eyes. It was still there.

The little creature was still flying in her room.

Should she scream? Should she say something? The brunette just stood there helplessly, not knowing what to do. The creature then finally faced her, grinning brightly.

Now that she looked closer, it looked a lot like a dog. Dogs were her absolute favorite animals! And it looked completely harmless, so she relaxed a bit, but didn't let her guard down completely.

"W-w-what are you?" Alexa asked anxiously.

"Glad that you ask!" it giggled. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Yapp and I'm your kwami!"

"My what?" Alexa asked puzzled. _What's a kwami?_

"Your kwami!" Yapp replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. A moment later, however, he gave the girl a blank look. "Wait, you… don't know what a kwami is?" Alexa shook her head in response.

Yapp blinked, then smiled brightly. "Well, then I shall have the honor to tell you our story!"

Alexa smiled back. Now he got her curious. "Sure thing. I'd love to know everything."

"As my mistress wishes." the kwami said bowing.

* * *

Alexa had never been so captivated by a story before.

From what Yapp told her, kwamis were 'quantic kamis' - kind of demi-gods - and were formed whenever a new abstract idea or emotion came into existence in the universe, such as creation, love, beauty, and mathematics. However, the kwamis couldn't be spotted by regular tangible creatures like humans. While they were able to journey across the universe, kwamis weren't sensed by humans and were unable to interact with them.

But this issue was solved many millenniums ago, when a mage figured out how to create magical jewels, so called 'Miraculouses', in order for the kwamis to be able to communicate with and assist people. From that point on, kwamis helped the holders of their Miraculouses achieve good in the world, although there were times where they were stuck with villainous holders and were forced to help them with their diabolical schemes.

The last fact saddened her immensely. The world now didn't sound any more different then from the last centuries. It would be a big dishonor to crumble it even more.

Another interesting thing was the 'Order of the Guardians', a group of Chinese guardians who protected and delivered Miraculouses. Over a millennium ago, Yapp used to be the kwami of one of said guardians, Master Zhào Chāng, before he was killed by Tibetan warriors*, resulting in the Dog Miraculous being taken away. Since then, it was "passed down" for many years, either through heritage or lost-after-death-and-found-again. Therefore, the kwami hasn't seen or met a guardian since then.

Yapp also told her a bit about the other kwamis. Tikki, for example, was a ladybug kwami and the first kwami (or being) to ever exist, thus bearing the power of creation and good luck. Her opposite was Plagg, a black cat kwami who bore the power of destruction and bad luck. Not to mention many other kwamis like Nooroo, the moth/butterfly kwami of generosity or Wayzz, the turtle kwami of protection or Trixx, the fox kwami of illusion and so many more…

"Say Yapp?" Alexa suddenly interrupted the kwami. "What do you represent?"

"That's a very good question!" Yapp replied proudly. "I'm the dog kwami of loyalty."

"… That actually makes sense." Alexa said. "Dogs symbolize loyalty. They always stay close to their owners and protect them from all kinds of danger."

"That's right!" Yapp made a backflip midair. "You sure seem to be very fond of dogs."

Alexa laughed loudly at that. "That's a _huge_ understatement, Yapp. I _love_ dogs!"

The dog kwami gasped. "So… does that mean… you love _me_ too?" Its little tail began to wag from excitement.

"Sure I do." Alexa replied sweetly before she gently took Yapp in her hands and held him close. "Whether dog or dog kwami, I love all sorts of dogs, you included."

The dog kwami whimpered as his pupils widened. Before the girl could react, Yapp lunged forward and nuzzled her cheek. "I love you too… mistress."

Alexa nuzzled back. "… You don't need to call me mistress, you know?" she chuckled. "It's enough if you just call me Alexa."

"Okay… Alexa." Yapp sniffed. He nuzzled the girl once more before flying up again. "Well then, what are we waiting for? Put on the Miraculous and let's go!"

Alexa nodded happily, but then her brain screeched to a halt. "Wait… what?!"

"You heard me: Put on the Miraculous! We don't have all day."

Alexa was taken aback. _Put on the Miraculous…_ she mentally voiced Yapp's words. But it didn't belong to her! She can't just take something that probably belonged to someone else. That would be very disrespectful!

She was about to voice her inner thoughts out loud, but the way the little kwami looked at her expectantly, not to mention the subtle puppy-dog eyes he gave her…

Ah, forget it! It will be only temporally, so no need to worry! Bending down, the brunette picked up the box and took out the Miraculous.

It was a thin black choker with an open end. The tips of the edges were shaped like grey dog heads with two rounded white beads next to each one and at the front were five larger white beads.

Intrigued, Alexa slowly put the Miraculous on. It fit perfectly, as if it was _meant_ for her. _Probably just a coincidence._ she shrugged.

"Ok… now what?" the girl asked.

"Now, you just need to say the magical words to transform." Yapp replied. "But beforehand," he interrupted her before she could ask. "you need to know a few things about the transformation. As you probably figure, you'll be a dog-like superhero with enhanced skills like stamina, strength, speed and also martial arts. Not to mention your senses will also refine like your nose and ears." Yapp ignored the girl's snort when he said 'ears'. "And last but not least, you'll not only gain a tool to fight, but also a superpower called 'Super Bark'. When activated, you'll release a very powerful, supersonic bark that'll blast your enemy into next week. But the downsides are following: You can only use it **once** , and after you used it you have five minutes left before you detransform. I can't hold the transformation forever and need to recharge with eating something…" He stopped himself. "… Speaking of which, I'm kinda hungry. I suppose you don't have anything with meat?"

Alexa snapped out of her intense listening and hummed to herself. "How about a sausage?"

Yapp's tail started wagging. "Oh yes! A sausage is perfect!"

The brunette nodded and quickly left the room to go to the kitchen. Now all alone, Yapp took a look at his mistress's room. He spotted a lot of stuff he had never seen before. Like the black thing on the desk with a big screen and dozens of buttons on it. Or a miniature version of it lying nearby, only there were no buttons except one. Or the white thing standing next to a box he recognized as a TV.

What also intrigued him was the rather small piano. Yapp then noticed a few sheets of paper pinned to the wall. All of them were music awards. Most of them were 1st prices. _Huh… Alexa must be really gifted in music._ the dog kwami thought to himself. _Maybe she likes to sing…_

Before he could explore more, said girl came back with a thin little sausage in her hand. Without a word, Yapp greedily tackled the sausage and began munching on it loudly. Alexa could only shake her head in amusement. _I'll need to teach him some manners later._ she noted to herself. As soon as the kwami finished, the brunette looked at him expectantly.

"Now," Yapp began. "before we go, you must promise me something." The girl nodded. "Nobody, and I repeat, NOBODY is supposed to know that I exist. Not your friends, not your family, not anyone. This is a secret that you **must** take to the grave."

"I promise." Alexa said. "Cross my heart." She drew a cross on her chest for emphasis.

"Good." The dog kwami held his head high. "Now repeat my words: Yapp, Bark on!"

Alexa took a deep breath. It was now or never!

"Yapp, Bark on!"

As soon as Alexa said these words, the dog kwami got pulled into the choker and its beads turned light brown. She felt energy radiate from it as the transformation began:

She gained a brown mask with a white mark between her eyes, their sclerae turning amber like her irises, resembling real dog eyes. Alexa's clothes got replaced with a light-brown, skintight bodysuit with a white chest, brown gloves and paw-like boots. On her back appeared a wooden bat with a white bone-like grip. She felt her hair getting messier as well as a pair of brown floppy ears with darker tips popping up on her head and a thin, tan tail-like cloth appearing around her waist. She did a few karate punches and spun around before the transformation ended with her in a ninja pose.

" _Amazing!_ " Alexa breathed in astonishment. She looked at her gloved hands and twisted them. She took her phone - which she fortunately left on her desk, because she was sure her suit had no zippers - and saw her reflection, eyes widening even more.

The mask sat comfy against her face and her real ears were hidden behind her hair, the dog ears hanging limply from her head. She then grabbed behind her and pulled out the bat, admiring the robust club in her hands.

"Hey Yapp! Is this the tool you were talking about?" Alexa called out, only to receive silence. "Yapp?" The brunette looked around confused, only to face-palm herself then. _Yapp is inside the Miraculous. I'm all by myself now._ She chuckled slightly at her own foolishness, before she froze. _Wait… I'm all by myself!_

Before her pessimism could start showing her the worst thoughts and scenarios, Alexa took another deep breath. She was fifteen, _damn it_! She could easily handle something as trivial as being alone! Looking at her clock, it read 4.30 p.m. Her parents won't be back by six, so she'll have to be back home by that.

Filled with determination, Alexa carefully opened her window and looked outside. The street was devoid of humans, only cars parking in rows. _Coast clear…_ Sitting on the windowsill, Alexa prayed silently to God before she leaped out.

… only to jump **higher** than she ever did before.

Alexa yelped as she flailed her arms, trying to balance her flight. Landing with a loud thump on a roof, the girl trembled with excitement. If she thought that before was foreign territory, then now was absolute overdrive! Never before had she felt so strong, so swift, so…

 _Free…_

Smiling widely, Alexa started to whizz across the rooftops. _I'm sorry, Marinette… but I guess I won't need a tour after all…_

* * *

 **A/N: And the dog's off the leash, folks! There will finally be an akuma fight next chapter. But 'til then, don't forget to R &R!**

 ** ***While the name of the guardian is fictitious** , he was killed during** **the 'Battle of Dafei River' in 670 AD when the Tang Dynasty (618–907) was defeated by the Tibetan Empire (618–842).**


	4. Unexpected Alliance (or 'Dodge Ball')

**A/N: Hey folks! The long-awaited akuma fight is finally here! But first, big shout-out to _retroGrape_ , _ArmyWife22079_ , _Starshine89_ , _Sakhmet and Hathor_ and _jazmin . silva13_. I always welcome interested parties, my stories are enabled for everyone!**

 **to _SpiderDom321_ : Once again, apology accepted, lad!**

 **The bullying is the main reason Alexa's the way she is today. Even though she remained steadfast, it affected her nonetheless, turning her into an insecure, pessimistic and self-doubting loner. There's actually more behind it, but it will be discovered** ** **through more flashbacks** throughout the story ;)**

 **Yapp is one of the younger kwamis, and though he's over 5000 years old, he's still very playful and childish. That's actually how I imagine my someday-to-be dog to be like 3**

 **The outfit was rather simple to 'design', but to be honest, it took me _ages_ to find something fitting for a tail XP Chat's got a belt, Rena a coattail, and Bloodhound... I was at a complete loss there! I didn't want to go 'Copycat' so I racked my brain thinking of something. After still ending up with nothing, I asked my mom about it, and she said that people sometimes wear cloths around their waist, giving me the perfect idea for a tail. And the boots look a lot like Chat's, only more paw-like. All in all, it was easy and not at the same time ':) But still, thank you dude :3**

 **And I can't wait to read your remastered story. I just know it's gonna be awesome, like the original :D**

 **to _ArmyWife22079_ : Whoa whoa, first of all: If you write a review to me, please do the spelling right. I almost didn't recognize what your review was all about until I took a closer look -_-'**

 **And second: Why 'let's play'? A dog isn't all 'All play and no work'. No, Bloodhound is gonna be the exact opposite. OBTW, I originally wanted the magic words to be 'Sniffer on!', but a friend of mine thought that 'Bark on!' sounded better.**

 **to _Starshine89_ : Thanks, lad! I promise I'll check out your OC story once it's uploaded ;)**

 **Well then, enough chit-chat, akuma fight at twelve o'clock!**

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile, somewhere downtown Paris…_**

In an unknown hideout, a window opened in a room filled with white butterflies. They were fluttering around a man with a metallic mask covering his whole head but the mouth. He wore a dark-purple dress shirt with a black butterfly-shaped lapel and in his left hand was a dark-indigo cane.

"Betrayed and abandoned by his own teammates." The masked man murmured. "Wallowing in a turmoil of rage and misery. A simply perfect prey for my akumas."

One of the butterflies landed on his open hand as he closed his other over it. Black energy surrounded it, and as the man opened his palm again, the insect turned black with purple accents.

"Fly away, my little akuma!" the man called as he released the butterfly, twirling his cane. "And find this poor forsaken person. Evilize them!"

The akuma fluttered through a hole of the window out into the city. Although small, it flew with an immense speed through the air before arriving at its destination.

Outside of a gym sat a blond, miserable looking boy with a lot of bruises on his whole body. He wore a white t-shirt with a green checkmark, dark-blue shorts and white sneakers. On his right arm was a small sweatband.

The blond was just having a match of dodgeball when his 'teammates' decided to change sides and let him handle the game alone. All the balls were thrown violently at him and he was laughed at, everyone calling him a loser. Humiliated, he ran out of the gym, still in his sport clothes and started sobbing on a bench.

How unaware the boy was of his incoming fate.

The akuma landed on the sweatband, infusing itself inside. The blond then looked up with his face red in a butterfly shape and a pink, similar looking outline in front of it.

" _Dodge Ball, I'm Hawk Moth!_ " the boy heard the man say telepathically whose face had the same pink outline. " _I can give you the power to take revenge on these brazen 'teammates' of yours. But in return…_ " Two images - a pair of red earrings with black polka dots and a black ring with a green paw print - were shown to the boy. " _… I want you to get me the Miraculouses of Ladybug and Chat Noir. Do we have a deal?_ "

"Yes, Hawk Moth." the boy agreed without hesitation.

Black 'bubbles' spread from the sweatband, covering his whole body and transforming him: his skin became deadly pale and his sportswear changed to black sweatpants with white knee pads, a crimson red shirt with half-long sleeves and ultramarine blue elbow pads while the sneakers turned bilious green and gained spiky cleats. On the blond's head appeared a thick, khaki helmet as well as a huge ball pocket on his back, carrying an infinite number of balls inside.

A small chuckle escaped his lips, turning into a full-blown, maniacal laugh as he pulled out two balls and started running towards the gym.

* * *

In the meantime, Alexa was still leaping from rooftop to rooftop, the wind in her hair and bangs. Adrenaline rushed nonstop through her veins as she felt herself pant while running. The brunette had never ever felt so alive before. Not even a roller-coaster could compare to this incredible sensation she felt.

 **This** was life!

In the span of ten minutes, she had seen a lot of sights: The Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, the Notre-Dame… but especially the world-famous Eiffel Tower!

 _Good thing I've experience with climbing._ Alexa praised herself a bit as she jumped the structure up to the highest point of all Paris. Now standing up, she looked around.

Only a few days in a new place, and she had already seen so much. She followed the sight of the Seine as it disappeared somewhere beyond the horizon. She looked at the clear blue sky and the con trails from the passing airplanes. And everything and everyone down there looked like little ants from up high.

Alexa closed her eyes and sighed blissfully. Absolutely nothing could ruin this moment now…

 **BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!**

Her eyes snapped up again. _What the heck…?_

Alexa's dog ears began twitching. She could hear people scream. And it came from the other side of Paris!

Her curiosity sense tingled like crazy. It dominated her self-worrying and urged her to check the commotion out. Wasting no more time, the brunette howled and jumped off the tower, sliding down the framework before leaping to the next closest roof.

* * *

 **BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!**

Marinette, who was sitting in the lounge of her pink room and sketching something, jumped up startled.

"Tikki!" she called. The red kwami flew up to the girl. "Did you hear that?"

"Sure did." Tikki replied worriedly. "Looks like Hawk Moth decided to strike today after all."

"Fortunately not during school time." Marinette deadpanned. She sighed heavily to herself before standing up. Well, to work!

"Tikki, Spots on!"

* * *

 **BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!**

Adrien, who just finished his Chinese lessons and was now doing his homework, gasped. A groan was then heard coming from the rubbish bin.

"Oh great!" a black kwami flew up with a piece of camembert in its paws. "So much for an akuma-free day."

"Plagg! There's no time for your cheese now!" Adrien replied annoyed. "Ladybug needs my help, so hurry up!"

The kwami only rolled its eyes. "You and your infatuation, kid." He threw the cheese into his mouth and gulped it down.

"Plagg, Claws out!"

* * *

"I'm Dodge Ball!" Alexa heard a loud boyish voice shouting. "And I'll shoot every one of you out to the edge of Paris with my Beaming Balls! And then, nobody can stop me from being the champion! Muahahaha!"

 _Dodge Ball?_ The dog heroine thought incredulously. _What kind of name is_ that _?_

Not really wanting to get involved, the girl hid behind a brick wall and peeked inconspicuously. The villain really stood to his name as he shot every person he saw with his balls, the victims materializing slowly to nothing but thin air.

If this disaster didn't stop soon, Paris will turn into an empty wasteland!

 _But that's what_ _ **you**_ _are here for._ A voice inside Alexa called out annoyed. _You're a superhero! Do something!_ The brunette nodded and was about to intervene…

… when a red and black polka-dotted yo-yo suddenly crossed her sight.

Quickly hiding again, Alexa's eyes followed the string to a person dressed in a red spandex suit with black polka dots, resembling a ladybug. Anatomically, they seemed to be female and a teenager - at least they _looked_ like one to her - with blackish hair tied with red ribbons into pigtails.

Pretty _familiar_ looking pigtails, to be honest…

But before she could analyze more, the girl jumped off again and approached the villain with lightning speed. The yo-yo spun like a shield in front of her and the thrown balls simply bounced off.

Dodge Ball growled and more balls were thrown at the red heroine. But she managed to either dodge or shield herself from every single one.

Alexa awed. That lass sure had guts! Not to mention experience. The brunette had never seen someone using a yo-yo so gracefully before.

Then suddenly, a black blur joined the girl. They seemed to talk for a second - well, the black more seemed to flirt with the red who groaned in response - before the latter sprung off again. This person looked more like a teenage **boy** with messy blond hair who was dressed in a similar suit like his partner, only that his was black and had metal details, and had cat ears on his head.

 _That must be the two superheroes that Paris is famous for._ Alexa analyzed. _What were their names again? Ladybug and Chat Noir?_

The two started attacking the villain simultaneously, the girl with her yo-yo and the boy with a metallic baton that extended and restricted itself. Dodge Ball seemed to struggle fighting back, and for a long while it looked like the heroes had the upper hand.

But when the girl charged forward at the villain, Dodge Ball grinned evilly and inconspicuously put out a leg, making the red hero trip.

Alexa gasped, then growled aggressively as she saw the villain watching the surprised girl stumble far across the street. _That cheater…_

"Ladybug!" she heard the black hero cry out terrified and watched with shock as he ran towards the injured girl. At the same time, Dodge Ball threw his next ball at Ladybug…

… only to hit her protector, who slowly began to materialize into nothing.

"Chat Noir!" the red hero screamed. "NO!"

 _That idiot!_ The dog heroine thought outraged. _Why didn't he divert the ball with his baton?! Ugh, boys!_

Meanwhile, Dodge Ball had a pink butterfly-shaped outline appearing on his face.

"Ugh, calm down!" he groaned to nobody in peculiar. "He was just sent to the edge. I'll get his Miraculous when I'm done with the girl!"

The villain then turned back to the still appalled Ladybug and smirked. A smirk Alexa knew too well.

 _He's gonna end her!_ the brunette fretted. Her thought proved correct as he pulled yet another ball out. With the girl still in shock, there would be no way she could dodge in time.

Alexa finally felt her insecurities disappear and replace with determination. _Ladybug needs a helping hand, and she'll get one._ Banishing any remaining pessimistic thought, she pulled out her bat and stealthily made her way to the red heroine.

* * *

Ladybug couldn't believe it.

Chat Noir just shield her from a ball and disappeared.

Her Chaton took a hit for her without thinking. Again.

Oh, she was going to strangle him. She was going to yell at him for being so reckless again. She was… she was… _argh!_

Ladybug barely felt herself pressed against the cold corner of a brick wall. Her dazed brain acknowledged way too late that the akuma aimed his ball against her.

She wanted to move. She wanted to get away from here, but her body didn't respond. It was too feeble. Too exhausted.

The ball was already half way there. She closed her eyes and turned away, silently awaiting her doom…

" ** _GAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!_** "

An earsplitting yell made her eyes snap up again, in time to see something landing in front of her. A human with a wooden bat in their hand.

Ladybug watched in astonishment as the person swung their rod at the approaching ball and blatantly chipped it off. The ball flew like a guided missile back at Dodge Ball, the villain dodging just in time, gawking at the glaring newcomer.

The figure then growled dangerously and charged on all fours towards the akuma, whose eyes widened in fear.

Dodge Ball desperately tried to shoot them off, throwing ball after ball, but the person simply dodged every single one, not once losing speed. They pounced on him with a raised bat and smashed it hard onto his head.

Despite wearing a helmet, the slam seemed to be too powerful for him to withstand. Dodge Ball's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell onto the floor.

Ladybug cringed at the brutal display, but at the same time couldn't believe her eyes.

The akuma was down. In one hit.

* * *

Alexa scowled as Dodge Ball fainted. Although he probably couldn't hear her, she pointed her bat at him.

"Take that, _cheater_." She seethed venomously.

Taking a few deep, long breaths, the dog heroine calmed her aggressiveness down… and then immediately whimpered in fright.

She forgot that she still misjudges her own strength! She may unintentionally have caused a concussion to him with that whack of hers!

 _Okay, quick checkup!_

Kneeling down to the villain, Alexa immediately searched for his heartbeat. _Still there._ She then carefully took off the helmet and felt his head. _A little bump, but fortunately nothing serious._ Lastly, she raised his head and listened…

 _Still breathing! Thank God!_

Alexa sighed in relief and slowly put the villain sideways, placing his head on his hand and crossing his legs in the recovery position. _And thank you, first aid course._

The brunette rose up to her feet again. Despite her quick victory, she couldn't shake this feeling off that something wasn't right. When the villain was fighting against the other two heroes, he had been quicker, more agile.

But when fighting her, he just tried to desperately shake her off. He didn't even move away when she was about to deliver the blow on his head.

It was almost too easy.

 _He was probably already worn out._ Alexa shrugged as she looked around. Not a single human in sight. Just an unconscious Dodge Ball and a paralyzed Ladybug…

…

 _Wait a sec… a paralyzed Ladybug?!_

Turning around, there was indeed Ladybug, still numbly pressed against the brick wall, having not moved an inch.

 _Holy moly… I completely forgot about her!_

Alexa's dog ears curved back in worry as she began to approach the frightened heroine.

* * *

Ladybug didn't know what to do.

One moment she was about to be defeated, the next a mysterious person appeared and saved her. This sudden change of situations confused her already clouded mind even more.

The next moments were just as blurry as the person hammered the akuma, then immediately checked up on him and was now walking towards her.

Ladybug felt herself stiffen once again. A cold shudder ran down her spine as the figure approached. Now that she looked closer, it appeared to be a girl around her age. A girl dressed in a brown skintight suit and floppy, dog-like ears on her very messy, medium-length dark-brown hair.

 _She kinda reminds me of someone._ Ladybug pondered. _But who?_

But before she could ponder on, the brunette suddenly held her hand out to her.

"Need a paw?" she smiled encouragingly.

Ladybug stared unsurely at the gloved hand, then at the girl and then back at her hand.

Alexa - the red heroine didn't know it was her - chuckled. "It's okay, Lass. I won't bite."

Ladybug's eyes widened at the sudden nickname. Tentatively, she reached for her hand and allowed the dog heroine to pull her to her feet.

"Are you alright?" the girl asked her worriedly. "You just came out of a big shock, so don't strain yourself too much. Okay?"

Ladybug nodded numbly. There were so many things she wanted to know: Who was that girl? Where did she come from? And how long was she already there?

"Th-thank you." she pressed out eventually. "Y-you're a lifesaver."

Alexa perked up for a moment before nodding. "All in the day's work." She then squirmed uncomfortably. "Although I might have hit Dodge Ball with more force than I planned to."

Ladybug cringed at that. Yeah, she had to admit that it really wasn't a very pleasant sight…

Suddenly, the brunette froze, her fake floppy ears twitching. Before Ladybug could even comprehend why, the dog heroine grabbed her bat and swung around, swatting a familiar looking ball away.

Ladybug looked ahead and saw the akuma, who meanwhile had regained consciousness again, frowning at them.

Alexa snarled. "I knew something was rotten here. No villain could be defeated that easily." She turned to Ladybug. "Don't worry. I'll just clobber him again and then we both take him away."

But before she could sprint off, Ladybug grabbed her arm. "No wait! Beating him up is not the solution. An akuma can only be defeated if you destroy the akumatized object."

The brunette raised an eyebrow. _So this is one of these so-called akumas?_

She heard the red heroine murmur something about a 'sweatband' before the latter threw her yo-yo into the air.

"Lucky Charm!"

Energy shot from the tool as it formed into another object, falling into Ladybug's hands.

"A dog leash?" she said incredulously. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"No idea." Alexa shrugged. "But maybe to leash him when he's weakened."

Ladybug's eyes started to dart around everywhere, her Lucky Vision observing the area.

Dodge Ball, Alexa and the leash flashed.

It gave her an idea.

Ladybug turned to the dog heroine. "Say, since you're a superhero, you also have a superpower, don't you?" She received a nod. "I need you to use it to take the akuma down. I don't know why, but I think it will work."

"You got it, Lass." Alexa gave her a thumbs-up.

Taking a deep breath, she concentrated and held up her bat.

"Super Bark!"

Like with Ladybug's yo-yo, energy shot from the club as the former raced down her arm, into her chest. A small, but sharp, pain surged through her lungs as Alexa raised her head, her eyes' pupils shrunk to dots and the sclerae paled.

 _Verdammt_ _! That hurts!_ The brunette cursed inwardly. _Why didn't Yapp warn me about the pain?_

Despite the stinging, her lungs felt stronger. Like one of a lion, whose roar would be heard even beyond the horizon.

She turned to the still present Dodge Ball, motioning him to attack her. Although a bit confused, the akuma didn't hesitate and pulled out his balls, sprinting towards her.

Alexa went on all fours, securing herself in the ground as strong as she could. Throwing a last glance to Ladybug, she growled in preparation and…

…

" **RRRRRUUUUUFFFFF!** "

A powerful supersonic wave was sent towards Dodge Ball and, despite the cleats on his shoes, swept him off his feet. The force was so strong, it even pushed Alexa a bit back, the girl flailing her arms to stay balanced.

Ladybug smiled. Just as she suspected, the akuma went flying into a brick wall and slid down, groaning. She threw the dog leash over him and quickly tied him up, before she grabbed his sweatband and ripped it apart.

In her weakened state, Alexa saw a little black butterfly flutter.

"No more evildoing for you, little akuma." Ladybug murmured and opened her yo-yo, spinning it wildly. "Time to de-evilize!" she threw it towards the butterfly, catching it. "Gotcha!"

"Bye bye, little butterfly." She told the now white, released insect before throwing the leash into the air. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

It exploded into thousands of ladybugs, who started to fly across Paris, fixing all done damages and restoring all the people again.

Alexa, who had recovered in the meantime, awed at the beautiful display. She had never seen something this… _miraculous_ … before.

She smiled to herself. The fight was finally over.

The day was saved.

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, I admit the fight was a bit lame. But if you disagree: thanks! The akuma was probably dumb too (and the Lucky Charm as well** **-_-'** **). I'm so uncreative with such things, so I need your help. Please post your ideas of akumas and Lucky Charms in your reviews, and I'll make sure to give you credit and execute the ideas as good as I can. It'll probably take time, but hopefully worth it in the end. Thank you in advance!**

 **Like always, don't forget to R &R!**

 **Oh, and if you guess the hidden reference here, you'll receive a cookie** **;)**

 **EDIT: Important announcement! As of the 8th July I'm off to summer vacation. No updates for the next three weeks! Thank you!**


	5. Aftermath

**A/N: Greeting from the Black Sea! ADL is finally back from vacation, folks! I had a blast spending time with my other part of family, swimming in the sea and watching the final of the 2018 FIFA World Cup! I really wanted France to win (my father reckoned it would be very unlikely) and I got my wish :D**

 **And happy birthday to me! Three days ago I turned 17, and now I'm only one year away from being full-aged (and two years away from finishing school)! I was overwhelmed with flowers and gifts and cake and a lot of hugs! And now I share those hugs with you too :D  
**

 **As for the reference: It is indeed from Disney's Bolt! The Super Bark in the film was the inspiration for Bloodhound's Super Bark, as Bolt's dedication to protect Penny by powerfully barking at the enemies was loyalty times ten! So, cookies for everyone (*.*.)**

 **This will be the last time I shout out those who favorite my stories (I had a long time to think it through, and now I made my decision), so big shout-out to _Moore98Luke_ , _WolfOfMusic101_ , _TKDGirl2016_ , _arapyanime_ and users who'll like my stories in the future! I love you all :3**

 **to _ArmyWife22079_ : Again, I'm _so_ sorry :'(**

 **to _SpiderDom321_ : Thanks a lot, lad! I tend to overthink things, but your words make me feel all better :)**

 **Don't worry, Chat's fine. Like Dodge Ball said, he was just sent to the edge of Paris. But if it makes you feel better: Chat was unable to get back into the city, even with Cataclysm, because of Paris being surrounded by an invisible force shield (dodgeball rules say that players can't get back inside the field unless they shoot an enemy out, but since it was foul play, _nobody_ could get back inside) so he was ultimately unable to help in any way ;)**

 **As for akuma ideas, it's honestly up to you. You can PM me or write a review, how you prefer it. I appreciate your ideas in any way ;)**

 **to _retroGrape_ : Thanks a lot, dude! For both compliment and idea! I admit, math is not my forte, but I'll try my best :3**

 **to _Sakhmet and Hathor_ : Thanks! Same goes to you :)**

* * *

Cheering sounded from all around as the dog heroine observed the area.

Alexa smiled when she saw Ladybug reunite with her black-cladded partner. As soon as Chat spotted his partner - pun **not** intended - he tackled her into a fierce hug. His expression told her that he was really worried.

Like, _really_ worried.

But before he could throw out any praises, Ladybug started ranting about how much his reckless action had scared her and how he left her alone to deal with the akuma and so on and so forth. Soon, her partner joined in and the argument began.

 _Bickering like an old married couple._ Alexa rolled her eyes at the ridiculous act.

A groan behind her made her ears twitch. She turned around and saw the former akuma, a slightly scrawny boy in sportswear.

He looked around bewildered, then sighed miserably to himself.

Alexa whimpered quietly at the sight. She remembered hearing that akumas were created when a person experienced negative emotions like sadness or anger. The **real** villain - _What was his name again? Hawk Moth?_ \- then infected them with this butterfly-thingies and used them to get the Miraculouses of the two superheroes 'to get _absolute power_ '.

And according to what she also heard, Hawk Moth was the Moth/Butterfly Miraculous holder.

 _The irony._ She thought bitterly. Said Miraculous was inhabited by the kwami of generosity, and Hawk Moth was _anything but_ _ **generous**_.

Her heart went out to the poor boy. He was very distraught and needed someone to support him.

She carefully approached him and knelt down. "You alright, lad?"

The boy raised his head and faced her, his misty eyes glistening. The dog heroine tilted her head at him.

Now that she looked closer, he wasn't actually that bad looking. The boy had nicely tanned skin with a lot of freckles on the nose and silky, windswept, honey-blond hair. And his eyes were a beautiful shade of silver, unlike any she had ever seen.

Alexa's eyes widened as she felt her heart skipped a beat and for a moment, she actually forgot to breathe. Her knees became weak and her cheeks flushed a deep red. Her tail unknowingly started to wag as she found herself gazing into the boy's eyes, unable to look away.

 _What are you doing?!_ Her inner voice called out indignantly. _You are supposed to comfort him, not_ _ **stare**_ _at him!_ The brunette blinked a few times and refocused herself.

"I'm not sure if you remember it, but… I still want to apologize." She squirmed uncomfortably.

"What… what for?" the boy wondered, not really comprehending anything.

"For nailing you on your head." the dog heroine grimaced. "I misjudged my own power and hit you stronger than I planned to."

Dumbfounded, the blonde reached to touch his head, wincing slightly.

Alexa instinctively reached out. "Careful! Don't touch it!"

"There's a bump, huh?"

"Yeah, sorry…"

The boy gave her a reassuring smile. "It's okay. I know you didn't mean it."

His smile was so fond that she couldn't help but smile back.

An awkward silence followed as both were avoiding each other's glances. The tension rose with every passing moment and the dog heroine wasn't sure why she felt so hot of all sudden. Neither did she notice them slowly leaning towards each other…

"Ryan!"

The pair yelped as turned both to the source of sound. A brown-haired, pale-skinned boy was running towards them. He was dressed in a similar outfit like the honey-blond, only his shirt was black with the word 'PUMA' and a leaping puma on it.

"I heard what happened before and wanted to–" He immediately stopped himself when he saw the two teenagers, who were still pretty close. "Err… am I interrupting something?"

"W-WHAT?! NO!" The honey-blond, Ryan apparently was his name, yelped. "Everything's fine, Bruce. Absolutely! She was just checking on me, no biggie."

"Yeah!" Alexa agreed loudly. "Just checking on him. Nothing else. Totally!" She then cleared her throat and straightened herself.

"Bruce, right?" she asked the newcomer and received a nod. "Go and get an ice pack." She pointed at Ryan. "He has got a bump forming on his head, and if not tended quickly, it might become worse."

The brown-haired nodded again and ran into the gym.

Alone again, Alexa turned to the honey-blond. "So… your name is Ryan?" she asked softly.

"Y-yeah…" He stuttered out. Amber eyes met silver once again, and the dog heroine once again found herself lost in them. "And what's yours?"

She opened her mouth to answer… before stopping abruptly.

 _Verdammt!_ She couldn't tell him her real name! She wasn't Alexa anymore, but a girl dressed in a dog-like superhero suit. Why didn't she think of it earlier?!

She needed another identity. **QUICKLY!**

 _But what does fit?_ She asked herself. _Probably a dog's name, but which? I know a lot of breeds: Dalmatian? No. Labrador? Nah. German Shepherd? Too long. Cocker Spaniel? Even worse._

Desperate, she looked at herself. Her body was thoroughly brown, only her dog ears' tips were dark. She pretty much looked like a…

…

"Bloodhound." She replied confidently. "Call me Bloodhound."

"Bloodhound…" Ryan repeated. "That's a pretty cool name."

"Thanks." Alexa - now Bloodhound - blushed.

 _Beep beep beep!_

The dog heroine's eyes widened at the sound. _After you used your superpower, you have five minutes left before you detransform._ Yapp's words echoed in her mind.

Oh no, the Miraculous!

"What's wrong?" Ryan asked worriedly.

Bloodhound darted her eyes in every direction. She needed to get out of here!

"Sorry, lad! Gotta go!" she said, backing away slowly. "I'd love to stay and talk, but time's running out. So long!" She then added. "Oh, and take it easy on your head. We don't want it to get worse, eh?"

With that said, the dog heroine jumped up onto the next closest rooftop, leaving the honey-blond staring after her.

At the same moment, Bruce arrived with an ice pack in his hand.

"Here." He handed his friend the cold bag. Ryan thanked him and held it to his head, hissing at the chilling sensation.

"Dude, who was that just now?" Bruce asked the honey-blond.

Ryan riveted on the rooftop where the girl had disappeared on, a silly grin adorning his flushed face.

"Bloodhound…" he murmured in an utterly blissful tone, making the brown-haired boy raise an eyebrow at his friend's strange behavior.

* * *

"NO!" Hawk Moth hollered inside his hideout. "I was so close to getting their Miraculouses!" He growled enraged. "That bloody mutt ruined everything…" The room darkened as the window closed.

* * *

Bloodhound ran as fast as she could across the rooftops, trying her best to stay out of sight. The choker had already beeped a second time, so she had to hurry up.

But she didn't get far when she heard a familiar voice calling.

"Hey, wait!"

Bloodhound turned around and saw Ladybug hurriedly swinging towards her. "Don't go yet!"

The dog heroine panicked. Her time was almost up, but she didn't want to be rude either!

"Lass," she started. "I really hope this is important, because I'm about to detransform."

"I believe you." Ladybug reassured her honestly. "And I can absolutely relate to your situation, but please, my partner really wants to meet you."

"Uh… okay." Bloodhound replied dubious. "And where is he?"

"M'Lady!"

Said partner landed right in front of them, retracting his baton.

"Did you find your 'lifesaver' yet?" he asked in a joking manner. "Because I'm really starting to think you just… made her… up…" His voice trailed off and his eyes widened at the dog heroine.

A long, tense silence followed as Chat Noir observed her. Bloodhound felt her tail tuck between her legs in discomfort and it took all her will power not to whine aloud.

After a moment, though, the cat hero grinned widely. "Why hello there, stranger."

Bloodhound was taken aback. For a second her ever present pessimism was sure he would disapprove of her. This guy sure had a very cheery attitude!

Clearing her throat, she made a serious face. "Greetings, Chat Noir."

Ladybug giggled. "Chaton, I'd like you to meet… erm…" She got a whisper from the brunette. "Bloodhound. She helped me fight the akuma today."

"The biggest _paw_ -leasure, Hound." Chat bowed extravagantly before smirking. "So was that your bark that _mew_ ears picked up from all across Paris?"

Bloodhound deadpanned at that. "Err, I guess…?" She threw Ladybug a look which said _Cat puns? Seriously?_ to which the latter replied with a helpless shrug.

"And you seriously walloped the akuma across his head?!" Chat then guffawed before erupting into hilarious laughter. "Someone sure has a _cat_ -titude!"

"Urgh, Chat!" Ladybug groaned and face-palmed, causing the cat hero to laugh even more.

Bloodhound rolled her eyes at that, frowning. If he thought that cat puns are funny, then this guy had some **serious** issues!

 _Beep beep beep!_

Their banter stopped dead as Bloodhound's Miraculous let out his third warning. Now she really needed to get out of here.

"Whelp, it was nice meeting both of you," The dog heroine told the crime fighting duo. "but now I _really_ gotta go. I'm about to turn back."

"Thank you again, Bloodhound." Ladybug smiled. "I really hope we see each other again someday."

"Same here." Chat nodded. "And thank you for looking out for M'Lady."

"You're welcome… Blacky." Bloodhound smirked before she took off to the next rooftop. She smirked even more when her ears picked up a faint _Did she just call me 'Blacky'?_ from a bewildered Chat Noir and a sigh from an exasperated Ladybug.

* * *

Jumping through the window of her room, Bloodhound heard her Miraculous beep for the fifth and last time before the transformation finally wore off.

Yapp came flying out of the choker, looking completely drained. "Woo! It's been ages since I've done that."

Before the kwami could fall down, Alexa caught him in her palm and pulled out a sausage that she had kept in her jeans' pocket. "Here, eat up." Yapp grabbed the piece of meat and began munching on it eagerly.

Ignoring the kwami's disgusting smacking, Alexa looked at her clock. It read 5.17 p.m. It was still pretty much early, not even an hour passed since she left.

The brunette sighed in relief. It was not easy keeping track of time when fighting against someone. And now that she really thought about it, Ryan sure was a nice guy. He could have blamed her for hurting him, but he forgave her instead. And the way he was facing her with such a soft look and that heart-melting smile…

Alexa froze up. _Wait wait, what?! Where did that come from?_

Shaking her head, she immediately dismissed the thought. He probably just caught her off guard with his look. Yeah, that was it! She couldn't possibly have already fallen for him… could she?

 _Argh! Feelings are so complicated!_ she groaned inwardly. Better not think about it right now. Not matter how much he made her heart flutter and her cheeks go red…

"Don't you have homework to do or something?" Yapp asked her suddenly.

Alexa jumped startled, catching eyes with the dog kwami, who looked at her expectantly. She nodded numbly and pulled out her school things.

Yapp was right. She still had school-work to do.

* * *

Landing through her trapdoor, Ladybug detransformed into Marinette and slowly got down her loft.

"That was a close call, huh?" Tikki murmured.

"Definitely." Marinette agreed. "Chat really needs to learn to think before acting. His actions almost lead to me being out anyway." She then turned to her ever-faithful kwami. "Speaking of the fight… there's something on my mind… that I just can't shake off."

"And what would that be?" Tikki asked her chosen.

"It's about Bloodhound. It just… she appeared out of nowhere and for a minute, I feared she was another akuma who came after me." Marinette said while she opened the Ladyblog on her computer. "… and she reminded me a bit of Lila when she was akumatized into Volpina."

"Don't worry about it, Marinette." Tikki replied. "If I know one thing, then it's that she certainly is **not** an akuma."

"Well, I know now too, but how are **you** so sure if it, Tikki?" Marinette wondered. "As far as I know, you were inside the Miraculous the whole time."

"Oh Marinette…" the red kwami giggled. "Did you forget that while you're transformed I can see through your eyes as well?" She then flew up to the computer and pointed at a snapshot of Bloodhound that Alya posted on the Ladyblog. Apparently, the journalist was one of the few people not hit by Dodge Ball's Beaming Balls and managed to get footage for the blog. "Do you see the choker she wears on her neck?"

Marinette squinted at the shot. It was not the best quality, but she managed to spot a very pixelated image of the jewelry around the dog heroine's neck.

"Yeah…" the designer replied. "That's her Miraculous, right?"

Tikki nodded. "It is one of the twelve Miraculouses of the Chinese zodiac: The long lost Dog Miraculous."

* * *

"Another Miraculous holder?" Adrien asked a cheese munching Plagg, who as soon as Chat landed in his room and detransformed tackled his precious camembert.

"And one of the most annoying one at that." The black kwami scoffed disdainfully, his mouth bursting with cheese at his chosen's face, who disgustedly wiped his face clean. "You know, kid, it honestly impressed me that you didn't paw at her or something. The Chats I knew never really got along with the Dogs, so it's kinda surprising."

Adrien paused at that. To be honest, the moment he saw Bloodhound, his first instincts were to hiss at her and show his claws. But he squashed them down, not wanting to be impolite.

But the model was not stupid. Cats and dogs weren't really the best of friends - unless they grew up together - so he figured if the dog heroine wasn't a fan of him, then things would become pretty ugly soon.

He secretly hoped that would _not_ be the case.

* * *

"Don't be bemused, it's just the news!" Alexa turned to the voice, coming out of the TV.

It was six o'clock and her father was in the living room and watched the news.

The living room was big with three quarters of white wallpaper and one quarter maroon. On the right side was a door that left to a little balcony. In the top-left corner stood a closet with glass doors, filled with tableware and other trinkets. Alexa's father sat on a white and brown couch, looking at a huge, flat-screen TV was placed on a wooden cupboard.

"This is Nadja Chamack with today's breaking news!" the woman spoke excitedly. "Excitement reigns in the streets of Paris! Everyone is wondering the same question: Is there a new superhero in the city?"

Alexa's eyes widened. _Say what?_

"Huh, that's new." Her father mumbled and turned to face his daughter. He had black hair which was slowly thinning, with a lot of grey streaks. His eyes were amber like Alexa's, but slightly greener. He wore a simple white undershirt and grey sweatpants.

"Oh hey Alexa." He greeted her. "How was your first day of school?"

"Quite eventful." Alexa simply replied, her eyes still glued onto the woman on TV.

"Even before today's akuma attacked, people reported seeing a mysterious person jumping across the rooftops." Nadja continued as pictures appeared on the screen. "As Ladybug was fighting Dodge Ball said person unexpectedly came to our beloved superheroine's aid. Footage identified them as a woman with brown hair dressed in a brown catsuit with floppy ears, armed with a baseball bat. The stranger effortlessly swatted the ball away and then brutally tackled the akuma to the ground. She then helped Ladybug finish off Dodge Ball by releasing a powerful bark heard all across Paris, knocking him off his feet and giving Ladybug the chance to purify the akuma. The woman was last seen talking to the akumatized victim before disappearing."

The camera switched to a blue-eyed girl with long, twin-tailed blonde hair. "I saw it with my own eyes: A shadow appeared above me and when I looked up, I saw a person leaping over the street. At first I thought it was just my imagination, but now… I know it certainly wasn't."

Another switch to a brown-eyed man with brown hair tied in a bun and a soul patch. "At first, I thought she was another akuma, coming in for a surprise attack. But man, it surprised _me_ when she attacked Dodge Ball instead of Ladybug!"

Another switch to a brown-eyed girl with short dark-blue hair. "After Ladybug used her superpower, I saw her turning to the person and telling her something, to which she initiated her own superpower. I think she called it 'Super Bark' or something. The released sound wave was so strong, it caused a little earthquake which almost threw me off my feet. It was scary… but at the same time… kinda thrilling…"

Another switch to a green-eyed boy with shaggy brown hair, whom Alexa recognized as Bruce. "When I arrived, she was checking up on my best bud Ryan and then asked me to get an ice pack for him. By the time I came back, she was already gone, but since then Ryan has been behaving kinda strange. Dude was murmuring 'Bloodhound' all the time, must have been that person's name. I just hope he'll be fine. I think that gal really did a number on him…"

The camera then switched back to Nadja. "Whoever this mysterious person was back there, all of Paris including our two beloved superheroes are thanking her unconditionally for her deeds. This was Nadja Chamack with today's breaking news!"

When the adverts started playing, Alexa stood there gobsmacked. _What have I gotten myself into?_

* * *

 **A/N: Phew, finally done! I don't really watch newscasts, so I didn't know how to write the last scene. But internet proves itself very helpful sometimes ;)**

 **Can you guess who the witnesses are? (EDIT: No crossover characters! All three appear in Miraculous ;) )  
**

 **Like always, all reviews are greatly appreciated (except flames) and remember:**

 **Stay cool and so long!**


	6. A Midnight Talk

**A/N: Hey there, folks! I'm so sorry for the long delay, but school started a week ago and I was overwhelmed with afternoon sessions and homework :( It also means future updates won't be that regularly any more. But I'll still try my best to balance school and writing.**

 **This chapter is by far the longest I've ever written! I mean, come on, almost five thousand words? I wanted to keep my three-and-a-half-thousand-words limit, but it just wouldn't cooperate with me! Ah well, here ya go.**

 **to _ArmyWife22079_ : Thanks a lot! Yeah, akuma ideas are slowly running out. But it's okay, I'll need time to create an 'episode' anyway, so don't sweat over it ;)**

 **Yeah, sorry, I should have phrased that question better ':) The witnesses are not other cartoon characters, since this story is no crossover.**

 **to _Lanere_ : I'm glad :D Aww, don't be so hard on yourself, the akuma idea is actually good. I'll certainly have fun writing this 'episode' ;)**

 **to _Starshine89_ : Thank you so much, lad!**

 **Haha, yeah, love at first sight :D But actually,** ** **Ryan is not going to turn 'super', so it will be just a simple love triangle. But it won't be easy for either of them ;)  
****

 ** **Aww, I'm so glad I made you smile, Star :3 I'm sorry again for my lack of reviews, but... you know ':(****

 ** **Bullseye lad, got 'em all right :D I wanted those three to have a little cameo in my story, since they _are_ recurring characters in this show after all ;)****

 ** **Thanks a lot! I wish I knew when it's your birthday so I could congratulate you :3****

 ** **to _GaoGod (Guest)_ : Wow, now that's what I call being thoroughly detailed O.O Thank you very much :3****

 ** **to _SpiderDom321_ : Again, it's water under the bridge ;)****

 ** **Yep, fluff will ensue in the future :D About Chat, I don't think his Lady would have appreciated him hissing at her savior ':) Besides, he may be Chat Noir, but he's still Adrien, a polite boy who wouldn't think of acting this way. Although, it might happen that Chat and Hound will quarrel sometimes, who knows...****

 ** **Well, Alexa is not very thrilled at that, I suppose ':( Well, Starshine already guessed the witnesses, so no need to sweat over it any more, I guess ':) Anyway, glad you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it :D****

 ** **to _Sakhmet and Hathor_ : Well, you don't have to anymore ;)****

* * *

The newsflash continued repeating itself in Alexa's head throughout the whole evening. Even the delicious supper couldn't distract her from the fact that all of Paris now thought that she joined Ladybug and Chat Noir in their deeds.

Yapp seemed to be the only one enjoying the whole situation. No wonder, little guy had been dormant for God knows how long. Nobody would like to be trapped in a jewelry piece, not seeing the outside world.

Now that Alexa really thought about it, she kinda understood why the dog kwami was so eager to transform again.

Of course, the brunette had no intention to join the superhero squad. For her, it was only a onetime thing. A little trend she'll never follow again…

… or will she?

 ** _NO!_** _Pull yourself together, Alexa! The Miraculous doesn't belong to you. You need to return it to its rightful owner. No ifs, no buts!_

Snatching a few sausages for Yapp to snack on, the girl left him in her room and took her pajama and a pair of underpants out of her wardrobe. She then went to the bathroom to take a warm little shower and brush her teeth.

As she looked at herself in the mirror, Alexa touched the choker that was still on her neck - fortunately, her parents didn't seem to notice it, either being too tired to care or dismissing it as a gift from someone.

 _I need to give it back._ She sighed. _There must be a guardian somewhere. But where do I find them?_ A lightbulb then went on above her head. Ladybug! She must know for sure from whom she received her Miraculous! Maybe she could give the brunette some information about it.

But it was pretty late by now. Is she even still awake?

After taking the shower and wishing her parents goodnight, Alexa grabbed a little cherry pit pillow out of the medicine cabinet for Yapp to sleep on and quietly entered her room. The moon illuminated the chamber in a dim light, making a peaceful atmosphere penetrate through the brunette's body. She saw the dog kwami sitting on the windowsill, staring peacefully at the full moon, unaware of his mistress about to approach him.

"Yapp?" His ears perked up and he turned around. At the sight of Alexa, he grinned widely and flew over her, giving her cheek a hug which she reciprocated.

"Ready for bed, Alexa?" Yapp asked the brunette.

Alexa shook her head. "Not yet, Yapp." She put the pillow on her desk and cupped her hands for the dog kwami to sit. "Can I ask you something?"

"I'm always open for questions." Yapp replied grinning. "Ask away!"

"Is there any way I can contact other Miraculous holders?"

"Of course there is." The dog kwami flew up again. "Your tool acts as a communication device at the same time. Just detach the rod from the grip, and you can use the _bone_ like a _phone_." He giggled at his rhyme, making Alexa roll her eyes in amusement. "Including a tracking device, a search engine… oh, and not to forget a built-in pen, a recording device and an MP3 player."

"An MP3 player?" Alexa asked bewildered.

"Of course! Music is the A and O of a healthy soul." Yapp twirled around. He then stopped midair. "… Don't you think so?"

The girl snapped out of her confusion. "Wha? Oh, yeah! Of course! Nothing's wrong with a bit of music." She then became confused again. "But why didn't you tell me all of this earlier?"

"You never asked." Yapp shrugged.

An awkward silence followed as Alexa gave the dog kwami a blank look. She then gave a sheepish smile. "Touché." After that, she began playing with her hair. "So… if I transformed right now to test it out, you wouldn't mind?"

"I wouldn't mind at all." Yapp replied. "Why though?" He perked up and his tail started wagging. "Are we taking a midnight stroll?"

Alexa nodded. "Something like that. I need to talk to Ladybug about something important."

"Well then, you know the magic words." the dog kwami smiled brightly.

The brunette returned his smile, though hers was a bit strained. _He doesn't have to know the real reason. It's better this way._

"Yapp, Bark on!" she exclaimed quietly, transforming into her superhero alter-ego. _Hopefully nobody saw the blinding light._ the brunette worried as she carefully opened the window, securing it before leaping out onto a nearby rooftop. There, she took the bat from behind and pulled the rod off the grip. Her eyes widened at the touchscreen the rod was apparently hiding when attached.

 _Now that's technology._ Bloodhound awed. She pressed the phonebook icon and selected Ladybug. A dial tone voiced and the dog heroine started waiting. _I hope Lass is still awake..._

* * *

Ladybug was in the middle of patrol when her yo-yo started ringing. _Why is Chat calling me? Did something happen?_ She took out her tool and answered the video call.

"Chat? Is something wro–" The red heroine halted immediately when instead of her black-cladded partner she saw a face she didn't expect to see. "B-B-Bloodhound?!"

Said person smiled sheepishly. "Hey, Lass. Did I wake you up?"

Ladybug shook her head numbly. "N-No, I'm… I'm on patrol right now. Is… is something the matter?"

"Yes, there is." the dog heroine squirmed uncomfortably. "Look… can we talk? I mean… if you're not too busy right now, it is?"

"Uh, sure." The blackette replied unsurely. "About what?"

"Please, just meet me at the Eiffel Tower in five minutes. I'll explain everything there." Bloodhound begged her. She didn't want to tell her over the phone that she wanted to give the Miraculous back. That would raise more questions, which would eventually stress the brunette out and lead to an intimidated hang-up.

"O-kay." Ladybug raised an eyebrow, but didn't press further. "So… in five minutes at the Eiffel Tower?"

The brunette nodded. "See ya." Then the screen went black.

Ladybug continued staring blankly at her yo-yo. _What just happened?_

* * *

"See ya." Bloodhound reattached the rod and quickly began calculating the fastest route to the Eiffel Tower.

Since her home was close to the Collège Françoise Dupont - which in turn was near the Eiffel Tower - the quickest way would be through the Place du Vosges.

Not wanting to waste any more time, she bolted towards the public park.

* * *

 _Five minutes sharp._ Bloodhound thought as she climbed up the tower's structure once again. From down below, her eyes could see the red suit with black spots of Ladybug already on top, waiting for her. Giving herself one last push, the dog heroine hauled herself up the railing, panting heavily. Somehow coming up here was more exhausting then this afternoon.

Probably because of the huge chip she had on her shoulder.

Or because she generally had no stamina - despite Yapp saying the suit would enhance it. Earlier today, the excitement gave her an immense adrenaline boost, numbing her sense of fatigue. But now, she was **_anything_** _but excited_.

It was then Ladybug finally noticed the girl and quickly came over to help her stand up, winding her arm around Bloodhound's back and pulling her up.

"Thanks, Lass." Bloodhound wheezed. The red heroine nodded in return and brought her to a bench where both could sit down and talk.

"So…" she began after the dog heroine recovered her breath. "… you wanted to talk about something?"

Bloodhound perked up at that. "Oh yeah. Right." She scratched her head uneasy, her tail sinking onto the bench. "Err… well, uh… you see… em… uh…" _Holy moly… That's harder than I thought. How do I even start such a conversation?_

The tension rose with every passing moment, making the awkward silence unbearable for the two superheroines. Bloodhound was mentally smacking herself for not thinking this through while Ladybug couldn't help but carefully study the brunette's face. _Her grimace… it looks kinda familiar…_

"… Ladybug?" Bloodhound murmured eventually, causing the blackette to refocus on her again. "About today…" She licked her lips nervously and twiddled her thumbs. "… It… I-It was never my intention!" she blurted out, startling Ladybug a bit. "I mean… uh… to make a scene, you know. N-Not the helping part. You needed help, so I did the only thing I could think of and just jumped into action without thinking, but then I startled you with my sudden appearance! Originally, I didn't want to intervene but… but then Blacky did the thing and… and you were exhausted and… and the akuma almost got you and… oh my god, now I'm rambling non-stop… haha…"

Bloodhound took a deep breath to collect herself. "What I'm _trying_ to say is… I'm… I'm… I'm sorry. For coming out of the blue and startling you and then disappearing again like nothing happened. I'm just… I'm sorry."

By the time the dog heroine finished, the tension was so thick, it would need a chainsaw to cut through. Bloodhound closed her eyes, silently awaiting a ridiculed response - ever the pessimist she was - but instead she felt a gentle hand being laid on her shoulder. She looked up and saw Ladybug giving her a soft look…

 _… just like Marinette did…_

"What are you apologizing for?" the red heroine asked bemused. " _I'm_ the one who should be sorry. For being unable to do anything and thus pulling you into this mess. Like you said: You did what you thought was right." She looked down sheepishly. "And I'm really thankful. It's only thanks to you that the akuma could be defeated today. Chat Noir and I are so deeply grateful for your help."

Bloodhound felt her mind short-circuit for the second time this day. A _superhero_ just expressed their gratitude for her! A simple civilian _recently-turned_ superhero received a 'thank you' from a _longtime_ superhero, who probably faced such events every single day!

 _How many life-changing experiences does it take for me to faint?_ she asked herself rhetorically, feeling giddy all of a sudden. But before she could actually lose consciousness, Ladybug cleared her throat.

"Speaking of which," the girl began. "you really saved us all today. If it weren't for you, Dodge Ball would have shot me out and later claimed Chat Noir's and my Miraculouses and Hawk Moth probably could have finally got what he wanted!" Both shuddered at this terrible possibility. "Honestly, at first Chat and I thought you were another akuma… But now, we know you're definitely one of us." Ladybug held her fist out to the dog heroine. "So, what do you say? Wanna be part of the Bug-and-Cat Team?"

Bloodhound's jaw dropped. Her ears perked up and her tail began to wag from excitement. _Is this a dream? There's no way this could be real._ She pinched herself, flinching from the pain. _Nope, I'm wide awake._

The brunette stared at Ladybug's outstretched fist, then at the blackette, who was giving her the most encouraging smile she had ever seen someone give her. It made her tremble with utter glee.

She wanted to say **yes**. She wanted to accept the offer. It was her life-long dream to help make the world a better place. To make a difference…

… but she couldn't.

Bloodhound closed her eyes and hung her head with a sorrowful frown. This greatly surprised Ladybug, having not expected this reaction. She then retracted her fist back.

"Bloodhound?" she said worriedly.

Said heroine remained deadly silent. Ladybug started panicking. _Was that too much for her? Oh my god, did I overwhelm her?!_ A sad sigh then ripped her out of her frantic thoughts.

"Lass…" Bloodhound murmured. She had to do it! She just _had_ to, no matter how much it killed her inside. "I'm honored… I really am…" She shook her head. "… but I can't."

* * *

To say the red heroine was shocked was a huge understatement. No, she was absolutely _flabbergasted_!

Not to mention bewildered. She knew that a few superheroes were lone wolfs - Spiderman is one example - but wasn't teamwork better than working alone?

"B-But… why not?" Ladybug stammered. "I mean… I get this is a lot to take in, but…"

"No, it's not that!" Bloodhound shook her hands in defense, interrupting her. "Trust me! There's _nothing_ I would rather be! Being a freedom fighter, fighting for justice… i-it was always my biggest wish! But… I can't. I just can't." She hugged herself, squirming under Ladybug's intense gaze. "… It's actually the real reason I called you up here. Because… you see…" She looked up with resolve in her eyes. "I want to give my Miraculous back."

…

A complete silence filled the area, not even cricket chirping was heard. Ladybug meanwhile tried to process what the dog heroine just said, her eyes widening more and more with every passing moment.

 _What? What?! WHAT?!_

"… What?" she finally managed to voice out the only word on her mind in utter disbelief.

"I want to give my Miraculous back." Bloodhound repeated once more. "I called you up here to ask you something and I would like an honest answer." She took a deep breath. "As far as I know, holders receive their Miraculouses from a guardian. So must have you and Chat Noir." She looked Ladybug dead into the eyes. "So please tell me: Who is this guardian? And where do I find him?"

* * *

By now, it was only a matter of time until the dog heroine would finally lose it. She wasn't used to holding eye contact with someone for that long, let alone stare deep into their eyes. Heck, just thinking about how much she demanded this night made her wanna throw up!

Alexa rarely ever asked for something. Years of rejection and ignorance by her former classmates had turned her into a person who did everything on their own. It made her reject any kind of help from others unless it's really necessary, only ever aiding others if **they** need the help.

The brunette never asked for items either. No brand-name clothes, no jewelry… occasionally video games, but that's it! And if someone asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she would either shrug with cluelessness or name something but quickly dismiss it again.

Which is why she felt so bad for asking Ladybug for this favor, no, **these** favors!

After what felt like an eternity, Bloodhound heard the blackette heave a deep sigh. A sigh of utter remorse. "Bloodhound… I… I can't just **tell** you such kind of information. Hawk Moth has his eyes and ears everywhere. It would be too dangerous to know…" Ladybug then stopped herself. "How do you know about guardians, anyway?" she asked confused.

The dog heroine shrugged sheepishly at that. "Let's just say my kwami's really talkative." She then shook her head violently, the serious expression reappearing on her face. "But that doesn't matter right now. I know, it really **is** dangerous… and the risks probably outweigh the benefits… but I _need_ to know! I _need_ to give the Miraculous back! I _need_ to return it to the guardian, so Yapp can be safe and sound!" The expression turned desperate. "Please Lass… that's all I ask for… no more, no less."

Ladybug didn't know what to do. She remembered Master Fu telling her, that nobody is allowed to meet him unless there is a special reason. Bloodhound may be a Miraculous holder, but she still seemed to be unfamiliar with the whole superhero stuff. It was way too dangerous to reveal the guardian's location to someone the red heroine knew barely a day either.

But the dog heroine refused to give up. Her pupils suddenly widened and her bottom lip began to tremble as she let out the most heartbreaking whimper ever heard. An action which rendered Ladybug completely speechless.

And made her flinch at the same time. Puppy-dog eyes were her biggest weakness! She was taught to look away and resist, but **this** was utterly ridiculous. Not even Manon could top these perfectly executed puppy-dog eyes, and that's saying something!

But she was still Ladybug. She still had some pride left. So instead of completely giving in, she asked Bloodhound something that was still confusing her:

"W-w-why are you so adamant to r-return the Miraculous?"

This question threw the dog heroine off-guard. She immediately dropped her act and started to sweat. Of all the things she expected Ladybug to say, this certainly _wasn't_ one of them!

"Err… I… uh…" Bloodhound stammered.

How will she get out of this mess now?

By telling a white lie.

"I'm… I'm not worth the powers." she replied. "I'm way too brutal, too inexperienced, socially awkward, etc. … I'm just not cut out to be a superhero."

It was a pathetic answer and Bloodhound knew it. And Ladybug knew too as she raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Is that all? Just a huge amount of self-doubt?" She then pinched the bridge of her nose. "… Okay, I admit. I used to think the same things about me, and it makes me a huge hypocrite saying it… but people don't just become superheroes out of the blue. Destiny chose you for a reason." The blackette had no idea why Bloodhound flinched when she said that, but she continued. "I know, it's a huge deal and I can relate to it. Camouflaging the secret identity, lying and making up excuses to avoid suspicion… I've been through it all myself and I don't like it either." She then lay a comforting hand on Bloodhound's shoulder. "But it's okay. You're not alone, Hound. You have Chat and me. We can suffer all together."

Bloodhound shrugged the hand off and turned away, the red heroine frowning in disappointment. "But I don't want this!" the girl retorted angrily. "I've already suffered a majority of my life! I've done things I regret 'til today, I barely escaped this nightmare of a former life! I don't need another burden, especially not one this big!"

Ladybug slowly felt annoyance building up inside of her. "Okay, now you're just being immature! There are way worse things to be considered burdens! Besides, you're doing it for the good of humanity! Paris needs you!"

Bloodhound now officially lost it. She stood up abruptly and snarled at Ladybug, her right eye twitching. "Paris needs _you_!" she yelled. She didn't care if the whole Paris will hear her. The dog heroine was just too mad. " _You_ are the one who heals the akumas! _You_ are the one who reverses everything back to normal! _You_ are the real hero, Ladybug!" She clenched her fists tightly. " _I_ am just a useless tag-along!"

"You are _not_ useless!" the blackette yelled back. She was usually in such control with her emotions, but Bloodhound's stubbornness was seriously taking it to new levels. "You are just as important as Chat and me! Like I said: If it weren't for you, today's akuma wouldn't have been defeated!"

"My point still stands! I don't want to be a superhero!"

"That still doesn't explain why you are so adamant to return the Miraculous!"

"That's just the way it is!"

"Stop lying to me and tell me the real reason!"

"I already told you!"

"No, you didn't! Tell me the truth, Bloodhound!"

"Grrr, BECAUSE UNLIKE YOU AND CHAT NOIR I WAS **NEVER** CHOSEN!"

Bloodhound screamed at the top of her lungs, echoing throughout the entire city and probably starting a lot of people and animals out of their sleep. She breathed heavily, her nerves completely frazzled. When the last trace of rage finally vanished, it was replaced with utter horror.

She had snapped. Again.

The dog heroine felt tears forming in her eyes and a big lump in her throat. She felt like scum. The biggest scum on earth. She let the tension cloud her mind, giving her old self the opportunity to resurrect its ugly face from the shadows. One more moment and she might have _lashed out_ at Ladybug!

The last thought horrifying her even more.

Bloodhound covered her face with her hands and started to sob uncontrollably, sinking back onto the bench as misery consumed her.

She just wanted to curl up and die.

 _I'm a monster… an utter monster…_

* * *

Meanwhile, Ladybug felt awful as she watched the brunette cry her eyes out.

It was all her fault. Bloodhound just wanted to ask her a simple question and she had reduced her to tears. It caused her gut to churn with guilt.

She had really done it this time.

 _A superhero is supposed to help others in need._ she thought ashamed. _And I just did the exact opposite._

The blackette sat down and reached a hand out, careful not to startle the already wrecked dog heroine, placing it gingerly onto her shoulder. It caused the latter to glance up and Ladybug gasped quietly at the sight of Bloodhound's tear-stained, puffy red eyes. She felt her heart drop into her gut, where it joined the ever-growing guilt.

Bloodhound hiccupped. "I… I… I didn't receive the Miraculous. I **found** it. I was not chosen to bear this power… never deemed worthy of it…" She took a ragged breath and gazed down. "… And why should I? I'm a walking disaster. I'm way too irresponsible and too scatterbrained. And if something happens to Yapp because of it… I'll never ever forgive myself…" Her eyes caught Ladybug's again. "I'm so sorry for bothering you, Ladybug. I never meant to go off at you like that." She then stood up. "I… I think I should leave better."

"No wait!" Ladybug suddenly exclaimed, stopping the dog heroine dead in her tracks. The former then took a second to collect her words. "Do you really want to go through with this?" She received an earnest nod. The red heroine then exhaled deeply. _Forgive me, Master Fu. And_ _ **please**_ _forgive me, Chaton._ "Fine. I'll tell you."

"R-Really?" Bloodhound asked stunned. "You will?"

Ladybug nodded. "I have the feeling you will find it out one way or another, so I might as well tell you." She then took another deep breath. It was now or never. "The guardian lives in the Quartier Asiatique; his name is Master Wang Fu. He owns a massage shop, that's where you'll find him."

Bloodhound smiled widely in gratitude. "Thank you so much, Lass. I promise I won't ever tell anyone about this conversation." She solemnly raised a hand up and put the other on her chest where her heart was. "Dog's honor."

"I know you won't." Ladybug smiled back, before squirming in sheepish discomfort. "By the way, I'm _so_ sorry for interrogating you like that. I really shouldn't have stressed you out like that."

"Nonsense." Bloodhound shrugged it off. "I'm the one who should be sorry. For losing my temper and yelling at you like I did. And the interrogating, that was honestly to be expected." She held out her hand. "No hard feelings?"

Ladybug didn't even hesitate when she took the dog heroine's hand in her own. "No hard feelings." The superheroines smiled as they shook hands before enveloping each other in a warm hug.

Bloodhound smiled as she felt a pleasant warmth spread through her whole body. She never felt comfortable hugging people, but this was rather comforting. _Wow… this feels… kinda nice. I wonder why I don't hug others more often?_ She then sensed a sudden unpleasant feeling in her neck and cringed slightly. _Oh yeah, now I remember it again: They give me neck cramps!_

Nonetheless, the girl tried to enjoy the feeling of being forgiven and cared. She rarely ever got these gestures from anyone - apart from her family - so absolutely nothing could force her from breaking this hug right now.

 _Beep beep beep!_

Well, except for their transformation time expiring.

They jumped apart and looked at each other, bewildered for a moment, before breaking out in carefree laughter.

"I think our kwamis both agree that we should go to sleep now." Ladybug breathed out.

"Heh, yeah. I'm dog-tired myself." Bloodhound chuckled. "Pun **not** intended." She added quickly, to which the blackette rolled her eyes anyway.

"So…" the latter then started saddened. "I… I guess this is goodbye?"

Bloodhound nodded, her dog ears curving back in sorrow. "For good." She glanced up to see Ladybug holding out her hand to her. The dog heroine smiled and the two superheroines shook hands again.

"Say hi to Blacky for me." the brunette chuckled. "And tell him he's certainly lucky to have such a partner like you."

"Uh, thanks." Ladybug blushed.

"Take care, Lass." Bloodhound chuckled again. "Again, pun **not** intended." She turned around to leave, but once more, the red heroine's voice stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Wait! Before you go… thank you again. For helping me defeat the akuma. And for helping restore peace in Paris once again." Ladybug smiled widely in appreciation. "The world needs more people like you."

 _The world needs more people like you… The world needs more people like you… The world needs more people like you…_

These words echoed inside Bloodhound's head, even long after Ladybug left, once again giving her this sense of déjà vu.

Ladybug told her the exact same things Marinette told her.

The _exact same_ things!

Could it be...?

 _Nah, never mind that, girl. Throwing a tantrum has weakened you both physically and mentally. It's just your tired brain messing with you. So just forget it!_

Exactly! It was just her tired brain messing with her! Just her consciousness pranking her! It's no biggie!

… _Right?_

* * *

 **A/N: Whoa, now that was unexpected. Or was it? Anyway, Alexa now knows about Master Fu and will pay him a visit the following day. Will he manage to change the girl's mind or will she actually give up the Dog Miraculous and pretend nothing had ever happened? And how will Yapp react to this whole thing? You'll soon find out in the next chapter.**

 **As always, reviews are greatly appreciated, and remember:**

 **Stay cool and so long!**


	7. The Path to the Great Guardian

**A/N: Knick-knack, ADL is back! School's being a nightmare - again - so before I go back to this place of hell, let's enjoy my last remaining hours with the next chapter. Why remaining, you wonder? 'Cuz speed-walking will kill me T_T As well as the recently botched math test -_-  
**

 **to _Starshine89_ : Happy belated birthday, lad! Hope you enjoyed reading three weeks of brain-wrecking writing ':)**

 **Don't worry, she will eventually. Alexa can't keep her secrets forever, especially not from the nosy journalist known as Alya ;)**

 **About the crush, I won't spoil anything. Though I'll say this: Alexa WON'T be happy about it -_-**

 **P.S. Hold ya horses, lad! The story isn't over yet ;)**

 **to _Romina Juarez_ : Lo siento mucho, no puedo hablar español, pero usaré el traductor de Google:**

 **Muchas gracias, muchacha! Me alegra que te guste mi historia :D Pero no te preocupes, aún no ha terminado ;)**

 **to _SpiderDom321_ : You were in Cape Cod? That's so neat! I hope you had a great time there :D**

 **Well, Marinette was the same way too. But Alexa's a bit different here: She's not the one who de-evilizes the akumas, she's merely a third wheel (literally ':( )**

 **Thanks a lot, dude! I nearly wrecked my brain writing this scene. I'm no good at such things like arguments and stuff, so I'm glad it paid off ':) And you're right there: Every hero has his struggles... Alexa just still hasn't recovered from her past experiences :'(**

 **to _GaoGod (Guest)_ : Meh, I wouldn't say Alexa is a Mary Sue. A perfectionist? Yes. But no Little Miss Perfect. Alexa has her flaws like everyone else, she's just scared of what might happen if she... you know ':(**

 **Not at all! And you shouldn't have, but still thank you :3**

* * *

Bloodhound rushed inside through the window, quietly landing on the laminate floor of her room. The transformation wore off just as she closed the window and lowered the shades.

Alexa groaned and rubbed her temples. She didn't feel like sleeping. Not after all this nighttime turmoil. It still gave her a terrible headache.

 _So there is a guardian around here. One known by the name Master Wang Fu. And he owns a massage shop in the Quartier Asiatique. I guess I'll need to ask Marinette about it tomorrow._

It took a lot of yelling to gain this information, but the brunette regretted nothing. She could finally return the long lost Dog Miraculous to its rightful owner and not jeopardize anything. Everything will be back to normal.

Well, at least to the point when she moved away anyway.

Deep in thought, she didn't immediately hear the whimpering coming from the cherry pit pillow on her desk. When it did though, it hit her like a ton of bricks.

Yapp!

Alexa felt another lump forming in her throat. The way the little kwami sobbed, he must have found out about her intention. And it sent freezing chills down her spine.

Her shaking hand carefully reached out to Yapp, him twitching from the touch but not turning around to face her.

"Yapp?" No reaction. Alexa was at a loss for words. "Yapp." She tried again, but the dog kwami didn't budge. She felt him shake under her fingers.

"W-why…?" Yapp whimpered. When Alexa remained silent, he finally turned around, his grey eyes filled with tears. "Why? I-I thought you loved me, Alexa! Why are you doing this? WHY!?"

Alexa flinched from the high-pitched yelp - quietly thanking God for soundproof walls - and felt her eyes moisten again. Oh, how much she hated this!

"Yapp…" she tried. "I… I'm just… You need to understand. You were away from a guardian for so long, away from the other kwamis. You've been vulnerable for over a millennium… I'm just doing what's best."

"Best for _me_ ," Yapp retorted angered. "or best for _you_?"

Alexa gasped at that. She then gazed down in utter sorrow.

Yapp was right. Was it him she was trying to convince… or _herself_? The brunette didn't even know anymore.

 _Gah, I'm such a basket case!_

Alexa exhaled shakily. "I… I'm selfish, I admit that. And… I don't always think about the opinions of others. I'm insecure… and shy… and self-doubting." She paused for a moment. "But… but that doesn't mean I don't care! Because I _do_! I _do_ care about you, Yapp! If I didn't, I wouldn't give a _damn_ about the dangers that would come with me keeping you!" Yapp's eyes softened at that. "I'm paranoiac **and** gullible at the same time. Sometimes my paranoia wins, sometimes my gullibility. I mean… I just started adapting myself to this new environment. Nobody knows me here. I can start completely from scratch again. I can finally be _myself_! The _real_ Alexa!" The girl pointed to the window. "Did you see what 'being Bloodhound' made me? A violent, dry-humored and cranky dog with a no-nonsense attitude! What you saw there was the _former_ Alexa! Not _me_!"

Alexa felt another headache coming up and began massaging her head again. Now she definitely won't get any sleep after all of this!

"Alexa…" Yapp murmured, his ears having curved back in worry. "A lot of my former chosen were the same way. But they learned to cope with that. Remember, Bloodhound is still _you_. It's just another face of yours, and you need to accept that. After all, you can't deny who you are."

The brunette knew the dog kwami was right. But she couldn't accept herself. She just couldn't! Her former self had ruined most of her life and will ruin this one too if she'll unleash it!

"Anyway…" she tried to change the subject. "Thing is, it's not about me Yapp, it's about _your_ safety." The brunette smiled as she cupped Yapp into her hands and rubbed his head with her index finger, the dog kwami immediately leaning into the touch and panting happily. "I wasn't lying earlier today when I said I love you. You're like the pet I never had. The best friend I always wished for. You're like a dog, but so much better! I can entrust you with anything and you would never tell. I can talk with you, laugh with you, cry with you… sing with you…"

"I _love_ singing!" Yapp exclaimed enthusiastically, his tail wagging and his pupils widening.

"Heh, I noticed." Alexa chuckled. "You were humming something the whole time I was doing my homework." she pointed out, to which the kwami shrugged sheepishly.

"Point is," the girl then proceeded. "I can pour you my whole heart out and you wouldn't tell a single soul." She rubbed her nose against Yapp's, the latter enjoying the Eskimo kiss. "Yapp, we may have only met today… but I feel like I've known you my whole life. I'd like nothing more than keep you by my side forever…" Alexa then pulled away and smiled sadly. "… but I can't. Ladybug is right. Hawk Moth has his eyes and ears everywhere. And if something happens to you because of my imprudence… I would never be able to forgive myself. It's just too dangerous, Yapp."

The dog kwami looked at his chosen for a long time. The sadness was evident, but there was also a tint of comprehension on his face. Yapp understood the brunette's reasoning, and he was sure Alexa would never lie about something like that.

"Can… can I at least spend another day with you before I… go back to being dormant?"

This question tore the Alexa's heart apart as she gazed into the pleading grey eyes of the little kwami. How could she say **no** to such a request?

The girl simply smiled and stroke Yapp's head again, a clear sign that she didn't mind. She carefully placed him onto the cherry pit pillow and gave him a little kiss on his forehead, causing a big smile to appear on his face. She then went to her own bed and nestled into the pillow.

Alexa watched the dog kwami slowly doze off. It must have broken his heart to pieces when he finally accepted his fate. And even though she had no idea what it was like to be 'dormant', she couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

 _Poor guy must be really lonely…_ she thought as she closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

* * *

 _Laughter sounded from all around. Utterly disdainful laughter. The brunette pulled the hood over her head and tried to ignore their voices as she walked through the seemingly endless hallway._

 _"Look who's there! It's the teacher's pet! Gonna suck up to the adults like the crawler you are?"_

 _"We're talking about Alexa Ivanov. She's the clear_ _ **definition**_ _of 'crawler'."_

 _She began to walk faster._

 _"You think you're one of us? Someone like you doesn't even deserve to be called a human being!"_

 _The girl felt the tears stinging in her eyes' corners as she gained speed._

 _"You good-for-nothing!"_

 _People bumped into her on purpose, making her almost trip._

 _"Go to hell!"_

 _She now ran for her 'dear' life, blocking her ears while trying to find a way out of this cursed place. Why was she here? How did she get here? Why couldn't they stop already?_

 _"Bitch!"_

 _"Asshole!"_

 _" **Freak!** "_

 _The brunette couldn't bear it anymore. She began to scream and to punch and kick. Anything to make them shut up. "LEAVE ME ALONE!"_

Alexa awoke with a start, completely drenched with sweat. She darted her eyes everywhere, desperately trying to calm her breathing. When she did, the girl groaned exasperatedly.

It was that nightmare again. The same one she has been having periodically. Although she's not there anymore, the memories _still_ continue to haunt her.

Alexa glanced at a curled-up Yapp, who was snoring quietly with his tongue tangling from his mouth. _Sleeps like a log._ She chuckled inwardly. _At least he has it good._

She looked at the watch. 3.02 a.m.?! Only four hours left! Ugh, great! She may as well stay awake. It's just not worth it.

The brunette fell back onto the pillow and groaned once more. So much for having a good night's rest.

* * *

"Miss Ivanov!"

Said girl jerked up from her seat, gasping sharply and slamming her hands onto the table.

"The square of the hypotenuse of a right triangle results from the sum of the two leg squares!" she yelled in one breath.

Silence. Alexa looked around the science classroom to see several students - even Chloé - staring at her startled, including a blue-eyed woman with dark purple hair and a beauty mark above her lip. She wore black square-framed glasses, along with a purple collared dress shirt with a white scientific scribble pattern underneath a white lab coat.

The brunette slowly sat back down, frowning in shame. "I'm so sorry, Miss Mendeleiev. Insomnia plagued me tonight, being new here and all…"

The teacher's shock eventually wore off and she looked at Alexa with mixed emotions. "You must know that I do not appreciate students dozing off in my lessons." She then added matter-of-factly. "And we are learning the intercept theorems, not the Pythagorean."

Quiet snickering was then heard from somewhere behind, to which Alexa blushed brightly and pulled her hood over her head in embarrassment. Marinette and Alya, with whom the brunette was sitting together, both gave her sympathetic glances, the former patting her back comfortingly.

"Buuuut…" Alexa peeked from under the hood to see the woman's exasperated face. "Since you **are** new here, I will let it slide for once. But don't you dare let it happen again, capiche?"

"Yes, capiche!" the girl nodded excitedly. "Thank you so much, ma'am."

"Very well then." Miss Mendeleiev replied only before resuming her teaching again. Alexa exhaled in relief. That was close!

She suddenly felt a wiggle inside her hoodie's pouch, no doubt the little stowaway trying to hold in his little laughter. The girl rolled her eyes in annoyance. This was going to be a _long_ day.

* * *

During lunch break, the three girls were sitting in the cafeteria with Alya showing Marinette and Alexa her footage of yesterday's akuma fight - and gushing non-stop about the 'new superhero in town' - but the brunette was hardly listening. Her head was still throbbing like crazy, partly from last night's events and partly from this damned nightmare.

She tried to focus on the main task: Return the Dog Miraculous to Master Wang Fu without exposing the secret.

Piece of cake, right?

"And then she totally nailed the akuma on the head and… Hey Alexa! Are you even listening?"

Said girl gasped sharply, pulled out of her intense thinking. "Huh?! Oh yeah, new superhero. Super exciting." She gave two thumbs up, laughing awkwardly.

The two besties looked at each other uncertainly. "Are you okay?" Marinette asked in a worried tone. "You're paler than you usually are."

Alexa flinched. _Because I had a nightmare that kept me up all night._ "Ah… uh… because of… a scream I heard at midnight?"

Alya perked up at that. "You heard it too? Man, that scream really gave me a headache last night. I wonder which crazy lunatic would have the guts to do that."

"Yeah, Mondays are full of surprises." Alexa agreed, mentally punching herself. _Great job, you dumbhead._ What she didn't notice was how Marinette squirmed nervously with a slight grimace.

"Oh, by the way!" Alya suddenly exclaimed. "Nice choker you have there, Alexa!"

This statement threw the brunette a bit off-guard. _Choker?_ She carefully touched her neck, tracing the jewelry that secretly was the Dog Miraculous. _Oh yeah. I didn't put it off last night._

"Oh, thank you!" she replied flattered. "It was… a-a parting gift! F-from my grand-parents! Yeah. I decided to wear it for school today, as a memento of them."

"It looks really beautiful on you." Marinette said earnestly, Alexa's cheeks turning pink from the compliment.

"More like utterly horrendous!" a familiar snobby voice called out from behind the girls. Groaning in annoyance, they turned around to see Chloé with her ginger stooge - whose name was revealed to be Sabrina. _Oh, great! She's just what I needed!_ Alexa grumbled sarcastically.

"Do you need a repetition from yesterday?" Alya asked peeved, crossing her arms. "Besides, don't you have something better to do than pester us with your comments?"

"It's black and white; monochrome to the core!" Chloé rambled on as if the brunette hadn't spoken. "And same goes for the rest! Only boys wear hoodies! And simple jeans and sneakers! And you didn't even apply any make-up! Just plain _unacceptable_! Someone should call the fashion police and accuse you of wearing such rags!"

During the whole time the blonde brat talked, Alexa was trembling with rage. _Why you little…_ She wanted to grab her by this yellow jacket and shake her like a rag doll. She wanted to tackle her to the ground, to choke her and beat her up senseless. She wanted to scream at her. She wanted to… she wanted to…

 _Easy, girl!_ her inner voice said soothingly. _Remember your anger management training: Take steady breaths and count to ten. Let the insulting words wash over you, like a river over stone._

The brunette closed her eyes and did as she was instructed. After she finished her count, she looked Chloé dead into the eyes, who stood there with the same smug face like yesterday.

"You…" Alexa started in a very calm, almost threatening, voice. "… are worse than Laura Schneider. And **that** is saying something." Without another word, she lightly grabbed Marinette and Alya's hands and pulled them far away from the mayor's daughter, whose demeanor remained disgustingly complacent.

"Who is… Laura Schneider?" Marinette asked carefully, yet curiously at the same time. Even Alya seemed intrigued by this name.

Alexa looked at the two girls with an unreadable expression for a moment, but then gave a reassuring smile. "Nevermind. It doesn't matter." She looked at her watch. "And lunch break ends soon. Let's scat." She nodded her head towards the exit and started walking, leaving the two still uncertain girls with no other choice than to follow her.

"Ugh, this Chloé girl sure can ramble." Yapp's annoyed voice quietly rang from the pouch just as he poked his head out to glance at his soon-to-be ex-chosen. "I wonder how your friends can handle her." Alexa's only answer was a helpless shrug.

* * *

After bidding goodbye to Alya and Nino - and once again snapping Marinette out of her ridiculous Adrien-induced stupor - Alexa was given a little tour around the area by the blackette as promised the day before. Although she already gave herself one the other day, a promise is a promise and the brunette always kept them.

Besides, Marinette guiding her successfully distracted the girl from the previous events.

They also went to the designer's parents' bakery, where Alexa was gifted with a box of hazelnut nougat macarons in gratitude for defending their daughter, and were now sitting in the park and enjoying the sweet pastries.

"I must say, Marinette." Alexa exclaimed giddily. "These macarons are amazing! I've tasted a lot of pastries in Germany, but **this** is the ultimate!"

"Aww, thank you Alexa." Marinette blushed. "My parents will be very honored." She then added exasperated. "And with honored I mean that they'll shower you with with more free pastries and hugs and thankyous and god knows what else."

Alexa laughed at that. "Better kindhearted and affectionate than mean and repulsive, that's for sure!" Marinette couldn't help but agree at that.

They laughed for a while, both comfortable in each other's presence. Alexa couldn't remember when was the last time she felt that relaxed with another peer. Usually it was always the adults or the seniors.

 _Ah well. Better get used to it._ she shrugged and stuffed another macaron into her mouth, sighing blissfully. Man, those treats were simply scrumptious!

…

Seniors…

…

 _Oh no, Master Fu!_

The shock caused the treat to go down the wrong pipe and Alexa to start coughing up a storm. Marinette immediately started panicking and proceeded to slap the girl's back to help the latter breath again.

"Oh my god Alexa, are you alright?" the blackette asked her worried.

The brunette coughed and gasped to regain her breath. "Yeah, I'm fine, thanks." she wheezed. "I just remembered something important I meant to ask you, and the macaron was halfway in my throat and… you know."

Marinette nodded understanding. "What is it?" she wondered.

"Well…" Alexa started, thinking of something to cover her real intention. "My mom… she has some serious backache as of late and… she went to some masseurs back in Germany, but none of them could really help her, so… I wanted to ask you if _you_ know someone who might heal her back…"

She practically saw the blackette's gears turning in her heads as the former waited anxiously for her to say something. _Now that I think about it, the thing with my mother's back is actually true. I just hope I didn't sound too suspicious._ For a moment she thought she noticed Marinette bearing an unsure expression, but it was gone in an instant, leaving Alexa to think she just imagined it.

"Actually… there is someone." the designer answered, the brunette to perking up at that. "And… he is really good at it. I can show you the way to him, if you'd like to." A nod and an empty treat box later the girls were walking down the park, towards their next destination. Alexa didn't notice Marinette looking down at her purse, where a red and black spotted kwami with blue eyes was glaring at her chosen in disapproval, but the latter giving her a reassuring little smile.

* * *

Well… here she was. The moment of truth has finally come. Behind this with bamboo designs decorated door was Master Wang Fu. The almighty Guardian of the Miraculouses. The one to relieve her of her 'burden'.

Her knees were trembling with nervousness. Marinette had to leave because of her parents needing help at the bakery, though she promised the brunette a continuation of the tour later. So she was all by herself.

Alexa looked down at her pouch, the dog kwami looking back. They shared a wistful expression, but both knew that there was no turning back now.

Yapp flew up to her face. "Well… I guess this is it." He smiled sadly at the girl and hugged her cheek, the latter reciprocating the hug. "It was nice knowing you, Alexa."

"Aww, don't be sad." Alexa cooed. "Look on the bright sight. You'll finally meet a guardian after all these years, and you'll be reunited with the other kwamis." She cupped him in her hands. "You'll be back with your family."

"Yeah… I guess." Yapp replied unsurely. "But still, I'm gonna miss you a lot, Alexa."

"I'll miss you too, buddy." She scratched him behind the ears a bit, making him close his eyes and pant in pleasure. The brunette then carefully put him back into her pouch and looked at the door. Gathering all of her courage, she knocked a few times. When no answer came, she carefully opened the door, and what she saw rendered her completely speechless.

The place was filled with many Chinese-influenced designs, decorations, and objects, along with scrolls hanging all over the walls. There was a little table with scented candles and a desk with a huge gramophone. Next to the door stood a divider, with bamboo designs as well.

But what really floored her was the old man resting on the huge white mat. He had grey hair and had a mustache and goatee. His attire consisted of a red Hawaiian shirt with a white hibiscus flower pattern, tan Capri pants, dark-brown shoes and a bracelet with a turtle-shaped stone on his right wrist. He was sitting in the lotus position with his eyes closed, seemingly meditating.

The brunette quietly entered the room when his eyes suddenly opened, revealing themselves to be dark-brown and filled with wisdom.

"Hello, Bloodhound." He greeted her with a gentle smile.

Alexa's eyes widened. Holy moly, this man saw right through her. There was no doubt that he was the guardian.

Feeling deep respect towards him, she folded her hands and bowed. "Wènhòu, Wang Shīfù."

* * *

 **A/N: Cliffhanger, everybody! Looks like Alexa's past continues to haunt her and she cannot come to terms with it. And who's this mysterious Laura Schneider? Maybe we'll find it out someday…**

 **Well, second day of school: not so good ':( But being plagued by nightmares, can you really blame her? Adrien and Nino are kind of in the background here, because I want to focus more on Marinette and Alya and their growing friendship with Alexa. But I'll try to include the boys more in future chapters, I promise ;)**

 **OBTW, Alexa practiced a bit Chinese to show her respect towards Master Fu. Being respectful is something she takes very seriously (unless people don't deserve it -_-)**

 **Ah well, like always, reviews are greatly appreciated and remember:**

 **Stay cool and so long!**


	8. To Be or Not to Be (or 'Muiser')

**A/N: Hey there, folks! As you see, I'm not dead... yet. Anyway, the eight chapter has finally arrived, the conclusion to the** **New Beginning Arc (That's how I decided to call the WHOLE prologue). And forget what I said about Chapter 6: _This_ is ****my longest Chapter _ever_! With over six thousand words XP**

 **Alert! An akuma fight is approaching! I couldn't decide which one I will be using, so I used _zufallsgenerator . net_ to determine the next villain, and the winner is... (drum roll)... Lanere, with her akuma idea 'Muiser'! Congratulations :D And those who didn't win, don't be sad. Your ideas will eventually come up too, I promise ;)**

 **to _SpiderDom321_ : Oh believe me, I do too ':( But it was necessary or else this chapter might have been even _longer_ XP**

 **Yeah, the poor fella... but certain things have to be accepted, including decisions :(**

 **Well, I won't reveal anything big, but Laura could be compared to Chloé, but less spoiled and manipulating. And who knows, who knows, maybe she will appear, maybe not. We'll see...**

 **Thanks a lot, dude. This is just one of _many_ conversations these three will have ;)**

 **to _Starshine89_ : We'll see what the outcome will be...**

 **Yeah, sometimes I wish I could enter the world of Miraculous and give Chloé a piece of my mind. I mean, I heard about these blonde stereotypes, but _she_ is the ultimate, and this is _not_ a compliment -_-**

 **Like I already mentioned, she will ;) She just needs a bit of time to adjust to her new environment.**

 **Well, you're not too far away from it. But there's more behind that, which I'll reveal in a future chapter ;)**

 **to _GaoGod (Guest)_ : Can't argue with that ':)**

 **Well, most OCs I read about are celebrities (or at least their parents carry authority), but Alexa's not a celebrity nor are her parents anything special, she's just your usual teenage girl.**

 **And I'm sorry if you're disappointed, but like I mentioned, everyone's akuma idea will come up eventually ;3 But if it consoles you, I already have an idea of the 'episode' forming...**

 **to _Unknown Guest_ : Let's just wait and see... ;)**

 **to _Gry22 (Guest)_ : Thank you :3 And I don't mind at all, I actually like it if others offer me their ideas, I'll just make sure to give them credit ;)**

 **Can you read minds? 'Cause I had a similar idea to this! (Though without the Frightingale part) But your idea is ten times better! I'll definitely consider your idea. Thank you very much :3**

 **to _Scarlet3Wolf12_ : Thanks a lot, I'm honored :D**

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own the akuma for this chapter. It belongs to**_ _ ** **Lanere.****_

* * *

"Please, take a seat." Master Fu requested the girl in front of him. As she did, he pulled out a teapot and two cups from behind, pouring himself some.

"Tea?" he offered, Alexa nodding respectfully.

"Yes, please." She answered and watched as the guardian filled the cup with the hot brew before handing it to her. A pleasant aroma rose up as the brunette sipped a bit. _Earl Grey Green, my favorite._ She sighed in bliss.

"So," Master Fu started, pulling her out of her previous thoughts. "I believe you did not just come here to ask me if I could heal your mother's back."

Alexa's eyes widened once again, to which the old man only smiled knowingly. She quickly refocused herself, though.

"Shì de, Shīfù. I came here to give something back that doesn't belong to me." The guardian nodded and his gaze fell upon the choker.

"The Dog Miraculous." he murmured, remembering the stories he was told. "The last holder known to the guardians was Master Zhào Chāng, also known by his alter-ego Dìyù Quǎn. A very honorable man. His dedication to serve his homeland was enormous… but unfortunately… not enough to defeat the Tibetan army in the Battle of Dafei River. With his death, the Miraculous was seized and used by the Tibetan Empire to take over the Tarim Basin. And since then, the Dog Miraculous was deemed lost." His eyes met the brunette's. "… Until today."

Alexa nodded solemnly and reached down to open her pouch, letting the little kwami out for the old man to see. Gazing at each other, Master Fu's eyes widened ever so slightly, as did Yapp's, but the latter then bowed to him as his mistress did before.

"It is a big pleasure to finally meet you, oh Great Guardian." Yapp said with utmost respect.

Master Fu smiled in contentment. "Pleasure is all mine, Yapp, dog kwami of loyalty." He then turned to the gramophone behind him. "Wayzz, why don't you come out and join us? No need to hide anymore."

At this, another creature carefully poked out its head out of the pipe before flying out, allowing Alexa to observe it a bit more accurate. It looked like Yapp, only it was light-green with an antenna on its head and a slightly darker green turtle shell on its back, along with a short pointed tail. Its sclerae were yellow and the irises were green.

Basically, it looked like a tiny turtle-alien hybrid.

At the sight of him, Yapp gasped loudly. "WAYZZ!" He immediately tackled the turtle kwami into a fierce hug, licking him all over the face in utter glee. The latter grimaced at the over-the-top affection and painfully endured being smothered by the dog kwami, which he didn't seem to notice though. "I'm so glad to see you again! It only feels like yesterday when I was separated from Master Chāng and the other kwamis! How are they doing?! How are _you_ doing?! I mean, I've been away for so long, I…"

As Yapp continued chattering to Wayzz, the two humans chuckled in amusement while sipping their tea. Alexa couldn't help but find the scene kinda funny, as she had never witnessed such a high level of excitement in her life. But at the same time, she was glad to see her little buddy smiling again.

It almost made her forget why she came here in the first place.

Well, until Master Fu requested the two kwamis to catch up in the side room so he could have a serious talk with her.

"Duìbùqǐ, Shīfù…" Alexa began, intending to end this as soon as possible. "As I said before, I–"

"Please, child." Master Fu interrupted her softly. "You do not have to talk in Chinese with me to show your respect. For your aura alone shows me that you are a very mature and respectful person." This statement threw the brunette a bit off-guard. The guardian only smiled knowingly once again.

"Well then… Master." She replied. "As I said before, I came here to give the Dog Miraculous back. Yapp has been vulnerable for so many centuries, it is time he finally comes back to where he belongs to: Safe and sound with the other kwamis… with you, Master." She reached up to take off the choker when she felt his soft hands cover hers, once again surprising her.

"Child… Your apprehension for others is truly remarkable." Master Fu said. "And your determination to find me and give me something back that does not belong to you shows how selfless you are… but for all that, is that what _you_ really want?"

The girl shook her head. "It's not about what I want, it's about what needs to be done. Master, with all due respect, I'm just not cut out to be a superhero–"

"Who said such a thing?"

This sentence completely stupefied her. She couldn't even start thinking about it when the old man continued while holding her hands in his own.

"Alexa… look at me." Her eyes met his disapproving ones. "You are doubting yourself too much. I see it in your eyes. Your past has damaged you a lot. You were rejected for who you truly are and it made you self-conscious. And angry. Angry at those who refused to accept you in their peer groups because of your uniqueness. And this caused you to do things you still regret until today."

Alexa felt herself nodding along with all of his words. Didn't matter how he knew, just that he _knew_! It was as if… as if he experienced it all himself…

Her curiosity suddenly nagged her. Master Fu spoke to her as from personal experience. As if he knew how that pain feels like…

Her cup of tea long forgotten, she frowned in thought. Did… did he do something he regretted too?

"While I did not have the issues you had, I have done something terrible in my past too." He said, as if he just had read her mind. Creepy. "In fact, this is the main reason why I'm here today. And sometimes, I still wish I could go back in time and prevent all of this…" The old man sighed wistfully, but then regained his focus. "But that is it. There is no use to cry over spilled milk. You cannot change the past."

"But you can influence the future." Alexa finished to herself.

Master Fu nodded. "Exactly. Alexa, you think of yourself as inept… but you have way more potential than you give yourself credit for. I have seen you yesterday, when you helped the poor girl collect her things without hesitating."

Alexa gasped. _He saw me helping Marinette?_

"And I also saw you protecting her from the blonde girl, who was the one to make her trip in the first place." he added. "You could have let the teacher reprimand her for being late, but instead you went out for her and selflessly took the blame. And what about the akuma incident? You instinctively jumped into the danger when Ladybug needed help, and you proceeded to take care of the victim, during **and** after the battle."

At the mention of the akuma Alexa's heart skipped a beat. Ryan… he hasn't been on her mind since she saw that news flash yesterday! A dreamy smile suddenly stretched across her flushed face as she stared into space, remembering his beautiful eyes and how nice this boy was…

… when a light chuckle ripped her out of her fantasies, causing the blush to become even bigger. Embarrassed by her daydreaming, Alexa pulled her hands out of the old man's grip and the hood over her head, trying to hide her ever reddening face.

"Ah, young love…" Master Fu murmured delighted. The brunette squeaked in return and tugged her hood even more down.

* * *

Nicole Schmidt was an ardent musician. Music had always been her passion since she could remember. Every day of her life, she would practice playing her saxophone and sometimes give little street concerts to please others. People loved her music, animals liked it, and she enjoyed every single note she would play.

But being a street musician also meant having competition.

As of late, a lot of street bands formed together and were drawing the attention to themselves. And of course, an ensemble was mostly better than a simple soloist.

Nicole always tried to stay positive. To reassure herself, that at least some people still liked her music, and that that was all that mattered.

But with each passing day, the amount of people continued to shrink and her dread to grow more and more.

And finally today, there was not a single person. She played and played… but no one stopped to listen. Even the little kids were being pulled away by their parent, not caring to spare the despairing woman a glance.

That… that was the last straw.

Nicole collapsed onto the pavement with her knees and started sobbing, her hands trembling with the saxophone. Far too gone in her despair, she didn't notice a familiar looking black butterfly flutter close and infuse itself into the instrument.

 _"Muiser, I'm Hawk Moth!"_ she heard an alluring voice breathe inside her head. _"Nobody enjoys listening to your music anymore, don't they? Well, from now on, the only music people will hear will be coming from_ ** _you_** _. All I ask of you is to bring me Ladybug's and Chat Noir's Miraculouses."_

The blonde raised up, her face red with the pink butterfly outline. "I am the one and only Queen of Music and nobody steals my spotlight!" Black bubbles began to spread from the saxophone, covering her body and transforming her:

Her skin turned a chocolate brown and she gained a white collared shirt with a blackish-grey vest and tie, along with black dress pants and high-heeled ankle boots. A black fedora appeared on her head and white-lensed sunglasses covered her eyes while the saxophone was silver-painted.

A sinister smirk spread across her face as Nicole raised the instrument to her lips. She had some attention to win back.

* * *

"Are you for real?!" Alexa exclaimed in utter shock.

She received an earnest nod from the old man. "Why yes, I am." Master Fu said. "Like I said before, your own insecurity is your biggest enemy. If you do not learn to cope with your dark side… you won't ever find your inner peace." He sipped a bit of his tea. "After all… you cannot deny who you truly are."

The last sentence reminded the brunette of last night. _That's what Yapp told me too…_

"View 'being Bloodhound' as a therapy session." Master Fu offered. "Each akuma fight and each patrol will help you learn to be more and more tolerant of your former self. And soon, it will dawn on you that you don't have to hide your true colors from everyone… because you are _perfect_ , just the way you are."

Alexa awed in wonder. _Does… does that really mean I…_

The guardian nodded. "Keep the Dog Miraculous, Alexa. It will guide you on your way to inner peace and help you make the world a better place." He smiled proudly at her. "You truly earned it."

The girl felt her eyes moisten. She had actually been approved! And by _the_ guardian, no less! She had been given another chance to prove herself!

With a bright grin, she bowed repeatedly. "Xièxiè! Fēicháng gǎnxiè nǐ, Wang Shīfù! I promise I won't disappoint you! And I'll learn to show my true colors again!"

Master Fu chuckled at the brunette's new vigor. _Some things just never change._ he thought amusedly when she spoke in Chinese to him again. But who was he to deny her that happiness?

"I know you will." The old man simply replied. He then nodded to the hallway where the two kwamis had disappeared earlier. "How about we call the two back again and tell them about the news?" Alexa nodded in agreement.

Just then, said creatures came back flying in, one overly excited and the other overly exasperated.

"Master, are you done already?" Wayzz whined in irritation. "Yapp is driving me crazy with his rambling." Said kwami licked him across his cheek. "And that."

"Wayzz, be a bit more tolerant." Master Fu scolded the turtle kwami. "How would you feel if you had not seen your family for a very long time and finally see them again?"

Wayzz's eyes widened at that and he hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Master." He turned his head to the kwami next to him. "And I'm sorry, Yapp."

"Ah, nevermind!" the dog kwami shrugged it off. "It's all water under the bridge!" He then turned his attention to the two humans. "So… I guess I'm going back to being dormant again?"

Alexa and Master Fu looked at each other and grinned. Yapp frowned in confusion. "What?"

The brunette motioned him to come closer. As he did, she pulled his ear close to her lips and whispered something. With every passing moment, Yapp's pupils grew wider and wider and his tail was wagging like crazy.

"Really?!" he asked Alexa in gleeful disbelief, the latter nodding with mirthful hum. Yapp turned his head to the old man who simply smiled in approve. The dog kwami felt utter joy bubble up inside him before he released an overexcited squeal.

"Yeeeaaahhh! I'm staying after all!" He danced elatedly in the air. "~I'm staying! I'm staying! I'm staying!~ Woohoooo!" Yapp began to bow repeatedly to the old man. "Oh thank you! Thank you so much, Master Fu!" He flew up to him and gave his cheek a big hug, which the guardian gladly reciprocated, before the little kwami tackled his now officially-approved chosen, nuzzling her face with tearful eyes. Alexa couldn't help but shed tears too as she held him close and nuzzled him back.

She couldn't remember when the last time was she ever felt this happy…

" **AKUMA!** "

The scream made the four individuals jump in shock. Alexa peered outside the window and saw people running away from something. She turned her head to Master Fu who looked at her expectantly. In return, she frowned in determination and looked at Yapp. "Come on, Yapp. Lass and Blacky need us!" He nodded grinning as the brunette proceeded to run out of the room, but not before meeting the guardian's eyes again. "Zàijiàn, Wang Shīfù. And thank you so much again."

"Wait." His voice halted her for a moment. "Before you go… here." He handed her a little card. "For your mother, if she is interested." Alexa nodded and pocketed it before bolting out of the room, closing the door behind her.

After a quiet moment, Wayzz turned to his chosen. "Master… I don't understand. Why did you let her keep the Miraculous? Didn't you say yourself that it would only complicate things more?"

Master Fu remained silent, but eventually stood up and went over to the gramophone. Gazing at it, he murmured absentmindedly. "Alexa is quite an exceptional person, don't you think Wayzz?"

"Huh?" the turtle kwami hummed in confusion.

"Her aura equals that of Master Chāng himself. A dedicated person with the desire to improve the world… but her biggest obstacle is herself." The old man continued. "Alexa can pack a punch… she just does not realize it. Not as long as she has that blockade in her heart. Only when she learns to accept herself, she will free herself from the burden and reach her true potential." He turned his gaze to the still quizzical kwami. "And the Dog Miraculous will help her."

* * *

" **AKUMA!** "

Marinette jerked up at the sound. _Again?! Ugh, why can't Hawk Moth just take a break for once?_ She grumbled inwardly.

Her parents immediately dropped their batter-making. "Tom, close the door and shut the windows." Mrs. Cheng instructed her husband, then turned to her daughter. "And Marinette, hide yourself and don't come out."

"Okay, Maman." The blackette nodded and ran up to her room, quietly thanking her parents for giving her an opportunity to sneak out. Opening her purse, she let Tikki fly out. "Alright, time to transform!"

* * *

" **AKUMA!** "

Adrien almost choked on his salad he had for his break during the photoshoot at the Trocadéro. _Two days in a row? Is Hawk Moth getting desperate or what?_

Ditching his lunch, the blond used the panicking of the crew to escape quietly and hide behind the stairs, letting his cheese-gluttonous kwami out. "Come on Plagg, time to transform!"

* * *

Alexa ran as fast as she could towards the scene of event, where she spotted the akuma, playing a saxophone. Dozens of people were gathered around, listening to the music in a daze. And those who weren't yet were slowly being drawn to the crowd.

The brunette had to admit. This akuma sure can make beautiful music. The tones were accurate, harmonic and soothing to her ears…

 _Focus, Alexa!_ Her inner voice called out annoyed. _Defeat the akuma, then relish the music._

Alexa nodded to herself and hid behind a brick wall, opening the pouch to let her kwami - HER kwami - out. "You ready, buddy?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." Yapp exclaimed giddily.

Alexa punched the air in determination. "Then it's time to unleash the dog!" She halted for a moment, processing what she just said. _Time to unleash the dog… huh, sounds good. I should use this phrase more often._

She smiled to herself and got in position. "Yapp, Bark on! Aaroooo!"

 ** _*insert here transformation sequence from Chapter 3*_**

Just before leaping into action, Bloodhound stopped herself, gaining an idea. _I should wait for Ladybug and Chat Noir. That way, I can surprise them with my comeback._ She hid behind the brick wall, giddily waiting for the two heroes to make their appearance.

* * *

Ladybug zip-lined through the air with her yo-yo, following the music sounding throughout the city. _So this akuma specializes in music._ She thought as she landed on a nearby rooftop, trying to formulate a plan.

When the blackette heard a quiet thump next to her, she knew her partner had caught up with her. "My, what a sur- _purr_ -rise M'Lady." Chat Noir purred. "We meet again today."

Ladybug rolled her eyes with an exasperated smile. "That we do, Chaton, that we do." She pointed towards the villain. "Let's go. The faster we're done, the better."

"Well, I'm in no rush if it comes to you, Bugaboo." The black hero wiggled his eyebrows, making her roll her eyes again. "But… shouldn't we wait for Bloodhound first?"

Ladybug grimaced at the mention of the dog heroine, which Chat took notice of. "Huh? LB, is something wrong?"

"Chat…" she began saddened. "Bloodhound… she won't be coming."

"What?!" he exclaimed aghast. "But… why not?"

The red heroine exhaled heavily. "It was last night… I met her during patrol and we began talking. After some time, I offered her to be part of our team…" She paused for a moment. "… but she declined. She told me that she wants to give up her powers." Chat gasped at that. "I didn't manage to convince her otherwise. We parted ways after that… Yesterday was her first and **last** presence." She added ruefully.

Chat immediately pulled Ladybug into a hug, holding her close to his chest. He may didn't know Bloodhound that well, but the fact that she saved his ladylove's life made him mourn her leaving too.

How could someone reject such a unique and sacred gift? He just didn't understand.

"But…" Ladybug continued after a short while. "… I can kinda understand her. I mean… it came out of nowhere, and it frightened her. To be put in charge of something like that can be a big change in someone's life. And Bloodhound was just unable to cope with it, I guess."

Chat hummed understanding. Becoming a superhero was a big change for him too; the best thing that could actually ever happen to his life.

Well, besides meeting Ladybug of course! And being allowed to go to a public school.

The two heroes continued holding each other close, relishing in each other's presence. It wasn't until they heard the akuma's music getting louder that they finally broke out of their comfortable silence.

"Oh no, the akuma!" Ladybug exclaimed before groaning in annoyance. "Note to myself: Never get sentimental during akuma fights _ever_ again." She pushed herself out of her partner's hug and took out her yo-yo. "Come on, Chat. Let's end this." Her partner nodded and extended his baton, vaulting after her towards the source of evil euphony.

* * *

Bloodhound perked up when she saw Ladybug and Chat Noir approach the akumatized victim with lightning speed.

"Hey, you wannabe-musician!" Chat Noir called out mockingly, the woman and her crowd riveting on him. "Why don't you try it with _caterwauling_?"

As he laughed over his inside joke, Bloodhound sweat-dropped. _Katzenmusik sounds better._

"My name is Muiser!" the akuma retorted annoyed. "And I'll make you pay for stealing my attention!" She turned to the still dazed crowd. "Dispose of them!" The people glared into the duo's direction before making a charge on them.

Bloodhound stiffed. They couldn't fight these innocent people! Regardless of them being under the akuma's control. But… they couldn't do _nothing_ either! The crowd will hinder them from battling Muiser, one way or another.

"Chat, you draw the mob away, I'll take care of her myself." She heard Ladybug tell Chat Noir, who nodded and started to mock the hypnotized people, causing them to follow him. Ladybug then turned to the villain.

"Now it's only the two of us, Muiser."

Said person smirked. A smirk Bloodhound was only too familiar with. _What is she planning?_

"You may have drawn my audience away, but you won't draw _me_ away!" Muiser sneered. She took a deep breath and blew stoutly into the saxophone, shooting lots and lots of giant bullets towards the heroine, the latter jumping away just in time to avoid the ammo exploding.

Bloodhound gape. _Holy moly… that could be a bit of a problem._

And she was right.

Without her partner, Ladybug could only shield herself from the rapidly incoming bullets. Dodging and shielding, but unable to come even close to the akuma.

That went on for several minutes before Ladybug finally jackknifed into an empty alleyway and tried to contact her partner, but to no avail. "Damn it!" she cursed and slumped against a brick wall in exhaustion. "I wish Bloodhound was here…"

Unbeknownst to her, said heroine picked up her murmur. _Okay,_ ** _now_** _I think would be a convenient time to intervene._ When she saw Muiser leaping over her, she nodded to herself and pulled out her bat. _I'm coming, Lass…_

* * *

"Your partner won't help you this time, Ladybug!" Muiser leered at the still panting superheroine. "Why don't you just give up and hand me your Miraculous already?"

Ladybug shook her head. "A superhero never gives up!"

"Your loss then." Muiser shrugged carelessly before blowing into the instrument and shooting one single bullet out. Ladybug tried to roll out of the way, but her body didn't correspond to her. She had found herself once again at an impasse. Without her partner. All by herself. And the only thing she could do now was pray for a miracle…

" ** _OH NO YOU DON'T!_** "

Ladybug gasped at the familiar voice. _Could it be…?_ Her thought proved correct as Bloodhound landed in front of her once again, chipping the bullet off with her bat back at the akuma, who was too shocked to dodge and let herself get hit by her own ammo. The explosion threw Muiser against a nearby building and sliding down the wall, groaning in pain.

Ladybug stared at the back of the dog heroine before the latter turned her head sideways and smirked at the blackette.

"Hey Lass, did you miss me?" Bloodhound asked smugly.

Ladybug was in awe. "Bloodhound… you're back." She whispered unbelievably. "But… I thought you wanted to–"

"–return the Miraculous? Well, let's just say I had a change of heart." The brunette winked at the red heroine, who then grinned from ear to ear. _Thank you, Master Fu._

A low groan snapped their attention back to Muiser, who was glaring at them while trying to stand up. The familiar pink butterfly-shaped outline appeared on her face.

 _"That bloody mutt again…"_ Hawk Moth's voice seethed inside her ears. _"Change of plans, Muiser: Eliminate Bloodhound first. As long as she protects Ladybug, you won't be able to get her Miraculous."_

Muiser glared at the dog heroine and raised the saxophone back to her lips. Bloodhound, knowing what would come next, gripped her bat tighter.

"Ladybug, go and get Chat Noir, I'll try to buy us some time." she commanded, the blackette nodding and running off to find her partner. Bloodhound then scowled at the akuma, smacking the club into her palm. "You played your last concert, Muiser. I suggest we skip the chit-chat and come straight to the point."

"Agreed." Muiser sneered back. As soon as it was said, the two persons engaged into a ferocious fight.

* * *

For the next few minutes Bloodhound dodged and diverted every incoming bullet while trying to figure out where the akumatized butterfly might be.

 _It could be anywhere: In the instrument, in the fedora, in the glasses, maybe even in the tie! But I can't come even close to her without her shooting these blasted bullets!_ She growled to herself. _Think, Bloodhound, think…_

Suddenly, she remembered something Yapp told her the other day. _Your senses will refine like your nose and ears…_

…

Her nose…

…

 _That's it! Maybe I can_ ** _smell_** _the akuma!_ Bloodhound pondered. _Well, only one way to find out…_

The brunette chipped off another incoming bullet before closing her eyes and taking a long and deep sniff. The absorbed scent created a thermal-like image of the villain inside her head, only instead of warmth there was the intensity of the scent. Muiser was entirely coated with various purple colors: Her body and clothes were lilac while things like the fedora and glasses were more violet, meaning they were the akuma's creation. But the only thing that had an eggplant - almost blackish - color was…

Bloodhound's eyes snapped open. Dodging yet another bullet, she saw Ladybug and Chat Noir swinging and vaulting towards the place.

"Lass! Blacky!" the dog heroine called out. "I know where the akuma is!"

* * *

Alexa followed Marinette as she guided her towards the Trocadéro, her 'secret garden of inspiration' as she called it.

After Chat used Cataclysm to make the Lucky Charm - a huge scaffold - collapse onto the dazed people and trap them, she had used her Super Bark to sweep Muiser off her feet and give Ladybug the chance to snatch the saxophone away and crush it with the dog heroine's bat. And after using the Miraculous Ladybug, everything was reverted back to normal, the crowd got dehypnotized and the de-evilized Nicole comforted - mainly by Bloodhound who reassured the woman that her music was beautiful and she was a talented musician, elating her.

(Meanwhile, Hawk Moth was sulking inside his hideout after another failed attempt of his, simultaneously loathing the new superhero.)

And just as the brunette found an empty alleyway to detransform, she was immediately approached by Marinette, who apologized constantly for the humongous delay and offered her to continue the tour right away. Alexa of course simply shrugged the apology off and accepted.

While she listened to the blackette in amusement, who was rambling non-stop about the amount of ideas she gained at this place, Marinette's phone suddenly ringed.

"Oh my god, Mari, Alex!" Alya's excited voice sounded from the video call. "You won't believe what happened today! The new superhero turned up again to aid Ladybug and Chat Noir! Truth be told, I couldn't record the fight, but I managed to record the aftermath! Look!"

Her face switched to a video of the three superheroes on a rooftop talking to each other, before the duo bumped their fists together and waited for the dog heroine to join them. When she did, a quiet "Pound it!" voiced and the three laughed merrily.

Alexa smiled fondly at it. _Thank you guys… For giving me a second chance…_

"Looks like Paris officially has another superhero." Alya exclaimed giddily, the two other girls rolled their eyes smiling. "Alright then, I won't disturb your tour anymore. See ya tomorrow!" The screen went pitch black.

Alexa then sighed. "You know, you both have certain goals in your life: Alya wants to become a journalist, you a fashion designer. And I… I don't know what I want to be."

"Don't worry, Alexa." Marinette reassured the brunette. "You're still young and have your whole life in front of you. So you have yet plenty of time to decide."

"Marinette is right!" a familiar voice sounded from nearby. The blackette squeaked and jerked her head to see her object of affection Adrien, flushing a bright red while Alexa smiled calmly. "At least you get to decide by yourself, unlike me." he said sheepishly.

"Your poor, poor fella…" Alexa cooed with exaggerating sympathy before perking up. "Hey Adrien. What are you doing here?"

"I had a photoshoot here today." Adrien exclaimed. "But because of the akuma, it had to be prolonged. I just got finished and saw you two coming and wanted to say hi."

Marinette turned even redder. "O-oh! T-that's so nice of you, why wouldn't it, I-I mean, u-uh… you a-are our friend and o-of course you would come and s-say hi… i-it's understood, and w-well w–" An inconspicuous jab from Alexa into her ribs made her wince. "–what Marinette is trying to say is, thank you for sacrificing your time to come over and greet us." The brunette finished with a rather stiff smile.

"Oh, okay. You're welcome." Adrien smiled, oblivious to the whole ordeal. Ever the cinnamon roll he was.

When a car horn resounded from behind, he smiled uneasily. "I'm afraid I have to go now. I still got homework to do. Until tomorrow, then." The blond waved.

"Y-yeah, u-until tomorrow!" Marinette squeaked out, Alexa simply waving and holding back a groan. When the limousine finally disappeared out of sight, the latter glared at the flustered designer. "What is wrong with you?!"

"I'm sorry!" Marinette wailed. "It happens all the time! I don't have any control over it!"

Alexa pinched the bridge of her nose. "Marinette, you're a basket case."

"Tell me about it." Marinette said dejected.

Alexa sighed before grabbing the blackette's hand and pulling her up the stairs. "I think the main problem is **you** making such a big deal about it. You have to stop putting Adrien on a metaphorical pedestal if you ever want to speak a coherent sentence around him. And I suggest you start with–gah!"

Alexa was so busy with her rant that she didn't notice someone coming her way. And before the girl could even blink, she found herself on the floor, wincing while holding her throbbing forehead. "Ow…"

"Oh no, I'm so, _so_ sorry! Are you okay?!"

Alexa froze up. _That voice…_ Slowly raising her head, she stared into the silver eyes of a boy with silky and windswept, honey-blond hair and dozens of freckles on his nose.

 _Ryan…_

Her cheeks reddened and her heart quickened its pace. He was looking at her with such worry and guilt… It was adorable.

 _He asked you something!_ Her inner voice scolded her. _Answer him!_

"I-I, uh… I'm f-fine." Alexa stammered slightly. "Just hit my head, is all."

"Come on, let me help you up." The honey-blond held out his hand to her.

Her blush deepened as she tentatively reached out for his hand, experiencing a tiny jolt when their fingers touched. His hand was so soft… and so warm…

The brunette let herself easily being pulled up by the scrawny boy, who was apparently stronger than he looked. He was dressed in an olive, white and navy blue, unzipped windbreaker jacket, underneath a white t-shirt with a green checkmark. He also wore khaki joggers and black Converse high tops.

When she realized that he still held her hand, she bit her bottom lip lightly.

"Oh, sorry." He pulled his hand away, rubbing his neck sheepishly. Her hand felt so cold without his. "I didn't mean, like, holding your hand or something."

"It's fine." She smiled, though she wished for him to hold it again.

Meanwhile, Marinette was observing the two shy teens, smiling fondly. _Aww,_ _une coup de foudre._

"I'm so sorry again, I need to go home now. Hope your head gets better soon." The honey-blond said caringly. "Oh, by the way, what's your name?"

"A-Alexa." The brunette stammered out.

"Alexa… a beautiful name." Her face went even redder. "My name is Ryan." He smiled at her before going past her. Alexa's eyes trailed after him, a goofy smile on her flushed face forming. _I knew it was you, Ryan…_

She then noticed Marinette grinning widely at her. "Err… what's with that smirk?" she asked confused.

"Who's the basket case now?" the blackette asked cheekily. The brunette spluttered indignantly at that and for the rest of the tour vainly tried to convince Marinette of the opposite.

* * *

It was 11.47 p.m. by now as Alexa snuggled into the warm sheet of her bed and smiled.

In just the span of two days, her whole life had been turned upside down. She met two amazing girls whom she actually became friends with, she was blessed with the power to turn super and fight for justice, and met the potential boy of her dreams.

Oh, and not to forget her new little friend, who was snoozing peacefully on the cherry pit pillow not too far away.

Alexa stared at the ceiling and sighed happily. _Mom was right. This_ ** _is_** _a great new beginning._

* * *

 **A/N: And that's it folks, story's over! I hope you enjoyed it all, stay cool and … nah, just kidding! It's** ** _far_** **away from the end. Although this is the end of the New Beginning Arc. From now on, it will be an Original Episode and a Fictitious Episode alternating. A** **nd since the arc starts a week after The Collector, the next chapter will be Prime Queen.**

 **And for those who are curious what Alexa said in Chinese:**

 ** _Wènhòu = Greetings_**

 ** _Shīfù = Master_**

 ** _Shì de = Yes_**

 _ **Dìyù Quǎn = Cerberus (Hellhound)  
**_

 ** _Duìbùqǐ = I'm sorry_**

 ** _Xièxiè = Thank you_**

 ** _Fēicháng gǎnxiè nǐ = Thank you very much_**

 ** _Zàijiàn = Goodbye_**

 **That said, I need a break from this story now! I have a lot of other ideas I wanna work on too ;) I don't know when the next chapter comes up, but 'til then, reviews are greatly appreciated as always. And remember:**

 **Stay cool and so long!**

 **OBTW, the magic of the Miraculouses prevented the heroes from being affected by the hypnotic music of Muiser ;)**


	9. Prime Queen (AU)

**A/N: Hey there, folks! ADL is finally back from hiatus! School has been a pain in my back, but I survived it quite well. I sure missed a lot, haven't I? Season 2 is finally out after _three long years_! Ugh, and don't get me started on how long this particular chapter has become ******)X****

 **Merry belated Christmas to y'all! I hope you all had a great holiday with you fam and lots and lots of presents :D**

 **So, where should I start? First off, if you saw Sandboy, you know that the real Dog kwami (or Barkk as its apparent name is) is save and sound with the other kwamis... and a girl. A _girl_! And the name... ugh, I think Yapp sounds way better, don't you?**

 **Oh, and I certainly can't wait for the new stuff** ** **in Season 3** to happen! New characters, new heroes... baby, here I come :D**

 **OBTW, please check out the poll I made! I really want to know your opinion, kay thx cu ;D**

 **to _what this2 (formerly SpiderDom321)_ : Yeah, Master Fu really is something else :)  
**

 **Well, it was Lanere who gave me the idea, so you shall praise her for that. I admit, the fight was indeed a bit rushed, but I feared the chapter would have become even longer (curse me and my love for long and detailed sentences) ':(**

 **I already have Sapotis planned out in my head, but it's certainly going to be interesting with Alya on the team :)**

 **OBTW, I heard about your dilemmas.** ** **I hope you get well soon :3 And** I'm sorry for what happened to your computer, dude :'( I hope you get back soon to your stories, I'll wait patiently meanwhile ;)**

 **to _NightRouge (formerly GaoGod)_ : Once again, thank you very much for your akuma suggestion, I appreciate it :3**

 **Yeah, I apologize again for the rushed ending! That won't happen again, I promise ':(**

 **And don't worry, as if I would ever abandon this story ;)**

 **to _Sakhmet and Hathor_ : Thank you :3**

 **to _Starshine89_ : Never change, lad, never change ;D**

 **That's Yapp for you: Approximately three thousand cycles old, but still a child at heart. And don't worry, this won't be the last time Alexa visits Master Fu ;)**

 **Like I mentioned once, Alexa's past will be explored in the future through more flashbacks, eventually leading to discovering why she's like that today. And I can't wait to write more Alexa and Yapp moments! Especially when the two of them will be singing ;)**

 **Thanks, lad. I don't want to brag, but if you give me an idea, I can execute it quite well ;D And you're right, Ryan will be happy indeed to see her XD And who knows, maybe he will, maybe he won't, I won't spoil anything ;)**

 **And last: A big thank you for putting up the message in the review section! I know lots of users just create an additional chapter for that, but this is actually against the rules! And I always make sure to follow these rules - even if others don't ':) So thank you very much for that :3**

 **to _Mistress Mysterious_ : Thanks, to both compliment and suggestion! I would that like very much :)**

 **to _Unknown Guest_ : Thank you very much! Actually, you gave me an idea for a future concept, so thank you twice :3**

 **to _Gry22 (Guest)_ : 1. idea: Great idea for a 'reveal', thank you :3**

 **2\. idea: Alexa and Ryan on a catwalk? Now that's something I want to see too :D**

 **3\. idea: Definitely considering that. Alexa's past can't remain in the shadows forever, after all ;)**

 **4\. idea: I was LMAO when I saw the way Fang behaves like a dog XD 'A Goofy Movie' huh? Need to watch that one again :)**

 **5\. idea: An acoustic rendition of MLP: EG's 'Friendship Through the Ages'? Count me in :D**

 **All in all, I love your ideas to bits! Thank you very much :3**

 ** **to _Unknown Guest_ : I was against it at first, but after seeing the future Season 3 concepts... I'm having second thoughts. But it probably won't happen in _this_ story, maybe in an eventual sequel...****

 ** ** ** **to _Unknown Guest_ : Like Alexa said, she doesn't know yet ':)  
********

 ** ** ** **Who knows, who knows... maybe...********

* * *

"Are you really sure you can't come?" Marinette asked the brunette through the camera of Alya's phone. "We could all watch the broadcast together."

"Sorry Mari, but no can do." Alexa shook her head in an exasperated manner. She was currently sitting in the living room, zapping through the TV channels. "I barely managed to get my _monkey brother_ into bed and I have to stay at home, lest he wrecks the apartment."

Said boy suddenly came bursting right through the door. He had messy dark-brown hair and amber eyes like Alexa. He wore a white tee-shirt with a picture of Bart Simpson holding a spray can while splotches of different colors covered the background. He also wore green shorts and black slippers.

"Lexi, kann ich mit dir fernsehen? Bitte!" the boy begged her in German. Despite Alexa constantly trying to teach him, he still couldn't speak English very well - let alone French - so he kept talking in their national language. But truth be told, he was only seven years old.

Alexa groaned. "Lukas, habe ich dich nicht gerade ins Bett geschickt? Es ist schon nach deiner Schlafenszeit."

"Aber ich will Ladybug und Chat Noir sehen!" Lukas whined. "Ich wollte schon immer richtige Superhelden sehen! Und gleich werden sie ins Fernsehen kommen."

Alya smirked through the camera. "Judging by the whining, it seems like your brother wants to watch the broadcast too."

"Why don't you let him watch it with you? After all: Together you're less alone." Marinette added.

" _Because_ ," Alexa emphasized. "Mom and Dad are gonna kill me if they find out that Lukas was watching TV past bedtime! It's a miracle they're even out tonight! How they managed to get an invitation to perform _that fast_ is beyond me."

Alexa's parents, in addition to their regular jobs, were freelance musicians. While her mother would sing, her father would take care of the technical equipment and 'tickle the ivories'. They even had their own website! And thanks to one of her father's colleagues, whose wedding they once entertained, word spread quickly and they were immediately booked for an event, leaving Alexa with her brother home alone.

"Oh come one Alex, don't be such a worrywart!" Alya exclaimed with a grin. "Your brother is obviously a huge superhero fan, don't spoil that opportunity for him! Manon can watch the interview, so why can't Lukas too?"

Alexa sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of her nose. _I'm so gonna regret this later._ "Fine." She turned to the still whining boy. "Also gut, Lukas. Du _darfst_ mit mir fernsehen."

"Jaaaaaa!" Lukas ran up to give his sister a big hug and a gigawatt smile. "Danke Lexi! Du bist die Beste!"

"Ugh, ja ja, ist gut." The brunette cringed, trying to get her clingy brother off her and ignore the giggles coming from the phone. "Aber _nur_ das Interview, danach geht's wieder Abmarsch ins Bett! Verstanden?"

"Geht klar." Lukas then grabbed the remote out of her hand and jumped onto the couch, pumping up the volume on the flat-screen TV.

Alexa rolled her eyes in fond exasperation and turned back to the giggling girls. "Be happy you fellas don't have a brother. Especially one who's eight years younger than you."

"Well, you're not the only one with younger siblings, so I can relate." Alya replied. "Anyway, search for the channel TV 5, _Face to Face_ is about to start."

"Will do." Alexa nodded. "See ya tomorrow, girls!" The two besties called out their own farewells before the screen went black. The brunette then turned towards the TV, her brother already having found the right channel. It looked like she was watching the current commercial, but she was actually staring off into space.

A lot had happened since she moved to France. Since she managed to befriend these two amazing girls. Since she turned super for the first time... and fought her first akuma. And while Bloodhound hadn't been that long in the superhero branch, she still received a surprising amount of acknowledgement (she swore she even saw some merchandise of her being sold, or did she just imagined it?) and it made her feel oddly proud of her accomplishments.

Nevertheless, she didn't let the pride get to her head. Recognition was nice, but not necessarily something to bathe in it. It was the main reason why she wasn't currently at the TV studio.

She knew her life would be full of danger now. Her parents, Lukas and her new friends' lives were all jeopardized due to her double life as a superhero. The brunette knew - partly thanks to her superhero-obsessed brother - that a superhero has to do anything there is to protect his identity in order to protect their loved ones. This was the reason she was ready, and reluctant at the same time, to let her 'dark side' appear again.

She didn't like it. She didn't like being so apathetic towards others. Or being so over-the-top serious. Or sarcastic. Or blunt. All the frustration, all the anger she builds up within she takes out while being Bloodhound. And she hated herself so much for feeling so satisfied after that.

But she **had** to do it. To protect her identity. To protect her family and her parents. To protect Ryan.

Ryan… Alexa was proud to admit that she managed to befriend him rather quickly. It turned out that Adrien was acquainted with him because of them attending the same basketball club **and** the same school - though he was in Miss Mendeleiev's class. But that didn't stop the girl from approaching him and his best friend Bruce after class.

And the best thing: She wasn't tongue-tied around him… well, not as tongue-tied as Marinette, that's for sure! Alexa found herself to be fairly confident around him, though that didn't mean Ryan _couldn't_ reduce her to a stammering wreck. The first step is always the hardest, after all.

(And there was also the thing with tablets. Why didn't anyone tell her the school used TABLETS?!)

Nonetheless, apart from an akuma here and there and arranged patrols at night, the week went by pretty much eventless. And now it was Saturday night, without any adults, just her and Lukas chillaxing in front of the tube.

What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

"How do you explain these photographs then?"

Alexa stared wide-eyed at the picture. A picture of Ladybug and Chat Noir… _kissing_. Her whole body went numb and she paled in shock.

 _What the hell?! Lass never told me about that!_

"Uh, Lexi?" asked a worried Lukas. "Geht's dir gut?" He apparently had noticed his sister freezing up.

"Ich… ja, alles gut." the girl said through gritted teeth, further confusing her brother. "Ich muss mal kurz auf die Toilette. Bin gleich wieder da, okay?" she gave him a strained smile.

"Ooookay…?" Lukas was still confused, but didn't ask any further, instead focusing the TV where Ladybug was trying to cover up the story.

Alexa rushed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her and leaned against it, breathing heavily.

Yapp immediately flew out of the hoodie's pouch and faced his chosen. "Alexa? Are you okay? Do you need anything?" The brunette ignored him completely.

She couldn't get the picture out of her head. Ladybug never told her about that. Never! Not even an indication of this. And yet…

She remembered what the red heroine told her just the other day.

 ** _Flashback_**

 _"Hey Lass." Bloodhound murmured during her rehearsing patrol with the red heroine. When the latter hummed in attention, the dog heroine continued. "You know I haven't been that long in this whole superhero department. And that there were other akumas I've never encountered." Ladybug nodded in confirmation. "So… would you mind telling me about those other akumas you and Blacky fought before? That way, I can be more up-to-date, you know?"_

 _"Sure thing." Ladybug smiled. "I don't mind at all."_

 _"Okay, but… promise me you'll tell me_ everything _? Every detail? Every moment? Even those you aren't proud of?" When she received an astounded expression, she carried on. "Just… I want you to know that you can confide me with this and I won't tell." She solemnly put her hand on her chest. "I'm a dog of my word. And I would never ever tell anyone. Do you trust me?"_

 _A short moment of silence passed, before Ladybug nodded once again. "I trust you. And I promise to entrust you with everything I know about the previous akumas."_

 _Bloodhound smiled softly. "Thanks, Lass." The two heroines then proceeded with the patrol._

 ** _End of Flashback_**

 _We agreed to talk about anything and everything. So why miss that? Is it something I really shouldn't know about? Does she not trust me enough with this secret?_ She gasped inwardly. _Did she…_ ** _lie_** _to me when she said that she and Chat Noir are not a couple?!_

The brunette suddenly felt anger consume her. Her blood was boiling from rage, from the thought of the zodiac duo lying to her. Did Chat Noir know it too? Did _he_ lie to her as well?

"Yapp…" Alexa glowered.

"Alexa… please–"

"Bark on." Bloodhound stood in the place Alexa formerly occupied. She then quietly went into her room and opened the window, about to jump out when–

"Lexi?"

The brunette gasped. _Lukas._ She rushed towards the door and slammed it shut. "Nicht reinkommen, ich bin nackt."

She could virtually hear him blushing in embarrassment. "Sorry, ich wollte nur sagen, dass das Interview vorbei ist und ich jetzt schlafen gehe. Gute Nacht."

"Ja okay, gute Nacht, Luc." Hearing her brother disappear, she breathed out in relief before looking towards the window again. With a sprint, she jumped over to the roof of the neighboring building.

 _Ladybug… Chat Noir… we need to talk._

* * *

Ladybug ran as fast as she could. She didn't know where, only away. Away from Nadja, away from the interview.

 _How could she show everyone that I kissed Chat Noir?! Now everyone is going to think that we're dating! And worse:_ ** _Adrien_** _is going to think we're dating! He'll think I'm taken and then we'll never be together! Ugh, can this night get any worse?!_

"Ladybug, wait!" shouted a voice behind the spotted heroine. She turned around for a brief second to see Chat Noir sprinting towards him.

"Go away, Chat! I'm in no mood to talk about this right now!"

"Just a minute, LB! Please!"

Ladybug didn't want to hear another word. She continued running. Running away from everything. It was simply too much for her. She ignored her partner's desperate calls, too caught up in her attempt to escape.

When she didn't hear the sound of boots following her anymore, she finally stopped on a random rooftop, taking deep breaths. _Finally._ She leaned against the brick wall and let out a long sigh as she slid down the wall.

" _There_ you are. I've been looking for you, Lass."

The blackette flinched. She slowly turned her head to see a not-so-pleased dog heroine glaring at her, her dog ears hanging back.

"So, I watched the interview. Care to explain those pictures?"

Ladybug started to sweat. "Hound, listen… i-it's not what you think–"

"Don't give me that story, _Ladybug_." the brunette growled. "Because I'm not falling for it. Let me ask you something: When did you tell me about you and Chat Noir kissing?"

Silence.

"Exactly. You _never_ did. What in the actual hell, Ladybug? Didn't we talk about this? I thought you trusted me enough to tell me everything! But you never mentioned this! Is it something I shouldn't know about? Or is it that you just don't trust me enough?"

"But Bloodhound–"

"Don't you 'but Bloodhound' me! You _promised_ me! You promised to tell me everything you and Blacky experienced before I came along! Or did you _lie_?"

That snapped something inside Ladybug and a glare of her own formed. "Bloodhound, you know damn well that I don't lie!"

The dog heroine scoffed. "Tch, _I don't lie_ , she said. Then why leave that out, hmm? It's called a _white lie_ , if you didn't know. You promised me, and you broke the promise by keeping _this_ from me." Her glare intensified. "What else are you keeping from me? That your father is _Hawk Moth_?!"

The girls were on the verge of yelling right now. Neither noticed a certain cat hero watching them from another deserted rooftop.

"You stop this right now, Bloodhound!" Ladybug bellowed, having finally lost it. "I'm not hiding anything else from you because there is _nothing_ to hide! Yes, Chat and I may have kissed on that picture, but that meant absolutely _nothing_! Chat Noir is _not_ my boyfriend! I don't even know who he is beneath the mask! All I know is that he's a cocky, arrogant and flirty show-off who makes terrible cat puns! He is not my boyfriend, he's not my friend, he's not my NOTHING!" Ladybug breathed heavily after her intense rant, glaring daggers at the slightly stunned Bloodhound.

"...W-w-what?"

The girls turned to see Chat Noir with a shocked, yet heartbroken expression, causing Ladybug to pale. His face then went completely blank.

"Oh. I see how it is." He then vaulted away without another word.

There was an unbearable silence between the two heroines.

"Oh, great job Lass!" Bloodhound then exclaimed. "First the pictures, and now Blacky! Two monumental screw-ups in twenty-four hours! Are you happy now?"

Before the blackette could open her mouth to say anything, they heard something weird off in the distance. It sounded like a TV news broadcast. The heroines darted their heads and saw a new akuma - an akumatized Nadja Chamack.

"Don't be bemused, it's just the news!"

Ladybug gasped. "Oh no, Nadja! Come on, we have to go and–"

" _We_?" Bloodhound interrupted her incredulously. "Oh no, there's no 'we' this time, Lass. You think I'm gonna help you after everything you've done?" She started counting her fingers. "You not only broke Nadja today and my trust towards you, but you also broke Chat's heart in the most excruciating way. To put it simply, you crushed _everyone_ today. And you really think that, after this whole fiasco, I'm gonna help _you_ get that akuma? Well, news flash - I _won't_. And neither will Chat." She turned away from the red heroine for a moment, before pointing her finger at her. "You brought this on yourself, Lass, now think a way out of it." She then leaped away, towards the direction where Chat Noir headed.

Ladybug remained standing on the empty rooftop, feeling her heart drop into her stomach.

 _What have I done…?_

"Ladybug! Chat Noir! Bloodhound! Are you willing to travel through the screen to save your darling Chloé?

"Ladybug, Chat Noir, Bloodhound! I beg you, save my jacket!"

Snapping out of her dismay, she saw Chloé on the screen, lying on the floor of a subway tube. She bit back an exasperated groan and threw her yo-yo towards the monitor, which went right through and hooked onto something, pulling her inside.

 _Bloodhound's right. I've caused this mess, now I have to fix it all by myself._ Ladybug frowned. _I only hope I can fix_ all _the messes…_

* * *

"Blacky!"

Bloodhound was searching for the cat hero, using her nose to sniff him out. Thankfully, his strange leather and cheese-scented smell made it easy for her to search for him. She eventually found him sitting behind a huge chimney, sobbing his heart out. It sent icy chills down her spine.

"Blacky?" Bloodhound gently touched his shoulder and gasped when he raised his head, revealing his bloodshot eyes. He immediately slumped again, his cat ears flat against his hair.

"Go away…" he muttered.

"Blacky…" the dog heroine felt a lump in her throat. She was (partly) responsible for the blond's current state, just like with Yapp a few nights prior. And it made her feel sick to the stomach. _Me and my big mouth…_

Without thinking, she pulled Chat into a hug, ignoring the emerging neck cramp in order to comfort him. The cat hero in turn didn't fight it, only leaning into the neck and sobbing even more, to which she replied by stroking his back soothingly. They held the hug for a long time, until his sobs began to cease. There was a warm patch on her neck where Bloodhound felt his tears, but she couldn't make herself care.

"W-what's wrong with me?" Chat's voice sounded thick with tears. "What h-have I d-done wrong? Why does she h-h-hate me so much?"

"I'm sure Lass didn't mean it." Bloodhound murmured softly. "It was the heat of the moment. People say the craziest things when they're angry."

"But… will I ever mean… _more_ to her?"

"Huh?"

"As in… will she ever consider me… _boyfriend_ material?"

That question confused the dog heroine. Weren't they already a thing? Unless…

Her mind screeched to a halt. She broke the hug and stared him dead in the eyes. "Hold on… you're… you're _not_ a couple?!"

Chat blushed slightly, but shook his head. "I wish. I'm so in the friend zone there."

Bloodhound was thrown for a loop. "Okay… so… you two are _not_ dating… but _you_ are in love with _Ladybug_ , right?" He nodded. "And… does _she_ know you love her?"

"No… well… at least I think she doesn't." Chat replied unsurely.

Bloodhound nodded numbly, finally grasping everything. _So Lass wasn't lying after all…_

Suddenly, Chat's baton began buzzing. Grabbing it, he saw Ladybug calling him. He was about to answer the call before the dog heroine grasped his wrist.

"Don't!" she said sternly.

"But M'Lady is calling me!"

"Yeah? So?"

" _So_?!" the cat hero exclaimed outraged. "We need to help her!"

Bloodhound felt annoyance grow inside her once again. "You seriously want to go and _help_ her? Even after she literally _ripped your heart out of your chest and trampled all over it_?! Aren't you still the tiniest bit upset?!"

"I may still be upset, but she needs my help and I _will_ help her!" he stated defiantly.

"FINE! Be that way! Go answer the call and be the **doormat** you apparently are!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. "Why do I even bother arguing with you?! You're absolutely _incorrigible_!"

Chat recoiled from the dog heroine. He wanted to open his mouth and retort with something, but found himself unable to. _Am I… am I really such a doormat?_

Bloodhound grimaced at her own harsh words. She pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled heavily. "… I'm sorry, Blacky. I didn't mean to yell like that. It's just…" She paused. "… I'm only looking out for you, okay? You may be willing to forgive Ladybug just like that… but I'm not - not yet, anyway." She glanced down solemnly. "… But that doesn't mean I have to drag you into this either. It's your own decision whether you want to help her or not. I'm not saying you should… but I won't stop you if you do."

Chat didn't know what to say. He silently glanced back at his baton, which was still ringing. After a short moment of hesitation, he pressed the decline button and put the tool back. Catching the dog heroine's perplexed expression, he rolled his eyes. "I didn't do it in your favor, if that's what you think. But… I guess you have a point there." He sighed uneasily. "I just hope I didn't make the wrong decision."

Bloodhound smiled softly at the cat hero. She couldn't help but feel the tiniest bit proud of his decision. Putting a hand on his shoulder, her gaze held nothing but utter resolve. "Trust me, Blacky. Everything will get better soon. I just know it."

* * *

Ladybug stared at the crossed out call sign of her yo-yo. _I should have figured. Chat's still upset with me._ Sighing in defeat, she put her tool away. _Guess I'm really on my own this time._

"What's taking these _good-for-nothings_ so long?" Chloé's snobby voice sounded from behind, clearly irritated.

Biting back yet another groan, Ladybug turned around to say something before Prime Queen bet her to it.

"Yes, Ladybug." The akuma drawled. "What's taking them so long? Aren't they aware of the trial I put you three to?" She sighed in mocking exasperation. "To think you could have saved yourself the whole trouble if you just admitted the truth from the beginning. But no, you decided to plead the fifth." Looking down at her bracelet, the ratings had stopped rising. She smirked. "Looks like we have to boost the trial a little bit." The screen then turned black.

Ladybug raised an eyebrow in confusion. _Huh?! Is the show over? But wait, what did she mean with_ _ **boost the trial**_ _?!_

Her questions got answered when the screen turned on again, showing Prime Queen in the Louvre next to a sarcophagus, which held a tied up Alya inside. "Ladybug, help me, please!" the brunette cry out in fright.

 _Oh no, Alya!_

"My dear viewers, you are in for the reveal of a lifetime!" the akuma exclaimed merrily. "Last chance, Ladybug: Admit you and Chat Noir are in love, or else…" She activated the television in front of her, displaying the Seine and slightly pushed the sarcophagus through the monitor. "… your biggest fan goes swimming!"

Ladybug gulped. What was she supposed to do? Admit something that wasn't true or risk drowning Alya? Both things made her feel nauseous. It was a lose-lose situation…

… _or maybe not?_ the red heroine pondered. _What if 'confessing' will lure her here? Well, only one way to find out._

"Okay, Prime Queen, you win." she stated stoutly. "I confess, Chat Noir and I _are_ dating, like you said. We are… in… love."

Prime Queen gasped in excitement and immediately reached through a screen to stop the train. The abrupt halt caused Ladybug to slam into the door.

"Our beloved superheroine is saving her fans' lives by admitting her true feelings. Our viewers are going _crazy_!" Prime Queen folded her hands, looking deeply contented. Seeing this as a chance of distraction, Ladybug immediately reached out to shove her hand through the screen, intending to grab the akuma's arm and pull her inside.

Too bad she couldn't have acted faster.

Prime Queen had noticed the blackette's attempt and changed the screen in time for Ladybug to stumble inside with a yelp. The screen went black once again and it was suddenly very quiet in the tube…

…

…

"Hey, wait! What about me?" Chloé spluttered indignantly, only to receive complete silence.

* * *

"Did you really think you can trick me like that?" Prime Queen taunted a shivering Ladybug, the latter currently being locked up in a kitchen's freezer of 'Le Grand Paris'. "Anyway, the time has come to push those ratings sky high! Let's make sure your partners finally come into the picture!"

Meanwhile, Chat Noir and Bloodhound were jogging a little bit - courtesy of the latter - to get their minds off of earlier events, when the big monitor suddenly went on and Prime Queen appeared.

"Greetings, _Chat et Chien_. In case you don't know, the name's Prime Queen, host of the soon-to-be highest rated show in all of TV history!"

The two heroes gasped. _The akuma…_

"But for that to happen, I have a trial for you: Prove your loyalty to your precious partner." The screen switched to the red heroine, still shaking from the cold. "Ladybug, do you have something to tell your watchdog and _sweetheart_?"

Said heroine directed her gaze towards the monitor. Her eyes held determination, but also remorse and desperation.

"Ch-chat, H-hound… I-I'm sorry. I'm sorry for a-all of this. The akuma, th-the situation, _everything_ … it's e-entirely my f-fault." She exhaled shakily. "H-hound… I'm sorry for breaking m-my promise. F-for betraying your trust. I sh-shouldn't have concealed the kiss. You h-have a right to know a-about the previous akuma fights… even the m-most mundane details." Her eyes started to moisten a bit. "And Chat… I'm so, _so_ sorry for insulting you like that. E-everything I said about you was a big, fat lie. You _do_ matter to me… more than you could ever think of." She sniffed a bit. "I know you're both mad at me, and what I did is unforgivable… but please, I need your help. I can't do it alone. I need both of you… _I need you, Chaton_ …"

Bloodhound smiled proudly. _She has finally learned her lesson…_ Turning to the hero beside her, her smile turned amused at the sight of the wide grin on Chat's flushed face and a hand on his heart. His bottom lip trembled and his eyes were wet with tears, pupils dilated. She put a hand on his shoulder and threw him a _Told you so!_ look, to which the cat hero's grin widened even more.

"How beautiful…" Prime Queen cooed. "Well, I hope you heard your partner's pleads, _Chat et Chien_ , because I challenge you to show yourselves! If not," She showed them the halfway-through-the-screen-pushed sarcophagus. "I'm afraid both Ladybug and her biggest fan will suffer big time." She mockingly tapped her bracelet like a watch. "The clock is ticking…"

 _Big mistake, Prime Queen._ Bloodhound smirked. There's only one place where a sarcophagus could be found at…

"I know that smirk, Hound. What's the plan?" Chat Noir asked eagerly.

"It's obvious Prime Queen wants to see you and Lass together." Bloodhound stated matter-of-factly. "So here's the plan: You go to your Lady while I go to the Louvre where Prime Queen is hiding. Since there are monitors everywhere on the streets, I sneak in through the sewers. You both keep her busy as long as possible while I approach her quietly and then I tackle her through the screen. The rest of it is obvious. Got it?"

"Roger." Chat nodded. Bloodhound then pulled out her bat, activating the GPS device to determine the quickest route to the Louvre underground.

"Good luck!" She wished, jumping off.

Chat turned back to the monitor, seeing his Lady still shiver - he swore her lips had turned blue - and frowned with determination. _I'm coming, Bugaboo…_ With a sprint, he leaped into the screen.

* * *

"Chat Noir!" Ladybug breathed in surprised elation, seeing her black-cladded partner tumble into the freezer. She was immediately pulled into a hug by the blond, him flinching from how cold she was. Nevertheless, he engulfed her completely and she responded equally, trying to find as much warmth in his embrace as possible.

"I'm here, M'Lady." Chat murmured. "And I _fur_ -give you."

Ladybug couldn't help but give a breathy giggle. Chat's puns usually annoyed her to no end, but this time she was actually glad to hear her partner pun again.

"What a reunion…" Prime Queen murmured softly. "I almost feel sorry for what I'm about to do." The butterfly-shaped outline suddenly appeared on her face. "Who cares if she's not here! I have what I want!" she exclaimed in an annoyed manner. Most likely Hawk Moth demanding to know where Bloodhound was.

Speaking of which…

"Where's Bloodhound?" Ladybug quietly asked her partner.

"On the way to the Louvre." Chat whispered back. When he caught her glancing at her yo-yo, he immediately held her wrist. "No, don't. Save your strength. Bloodhound has a plan, but we have to play along." He winked at the blackette. "Trust me on this."

* * *

 _At the next T-junction turn left…_

Bloodhound gagged as the strong odor hit her canine nose. _I swear, this sewage smells worse than Lukas' feet._ Holding her nose, she almost breathed a sigh of relief when the manhole cover leading into the Louvre finally came in sight. With a quiet grunt, she lifted the heavy lid and climbed out.

She wasted no time and spurted into the Egyptian Department. Upon turning the corner, she saw Prime Queen in all her glory, surrounded by countless monitors. She breathed deeply through her nose. _The bracelet._ Carefully making her way towards the akuma, she faintly caught Chat Noir's defiant voice speaking from the screen.

"M'Lady matters to me more than anything in the world. She's the light in the darkness of my life, the color in my monochrome world. And her warmth melts the ice that has frozen my heart for so long. I can't imagine a life without this _purr_ -fect, _claw_ -some bug by my side."

Bloodhound had to bite her tongue lest she released an annoyed groan. _Blacky may be a sweetheart, but his puns are terrible._ She sunk on all fours. _Eyes on the prize, Alexa._

* * *

"Caresses won't help you either, Kitty." Prime Queen commented. "Now then: Remove your Miraculous and reveal your true selves! Or else…" She pushed the sarcophagus further into the screen.

The zodiac duo gasped. _Damnit…_ _Bloodhound, where are you…?_ Chat cursed inwardly.

"It is finally time everyone finds out about their favorite superheroes!" Prime Queen looks down at her bracelet and laughed merrily. "It's almost done! The ratings are higher than ever before! Nobody can stop me now!"

 ** _"YES I CAN!"_**

Gasping, the akuma turned around and felt the air leave her lungs as she was brutally tackled to the side. Bloodhound dragged her across the floor until she managed to get them both to tumble into the closest screen of the freezer. She then immediately pinned the woman to the ground, bending her right arm behind her back, the latter gasping from the pain coursing into her shoulder joint.

"Stay down." Bloodhound snarled. She then turned to the two stunned superheroes. "Blacky! The bracelet! Break it!"

The cat hero quickly snapped out of his stupor and nailed his baton into the akumatized object, the black butterfly fluttering out.

"Cata–" But before he could execute his superpower, Bloodhound pulled out her bat and smashed it across the heavy door, the hinges detaching from the frame and letting the door fall onto the floor.

"Save your power, kitty." She smirked at his bemused expression. She then turned to the still dumbfounded heroine. "Your turn, Lass."

Ladybug refocused herself and nodded, stepping out of the freezer to fulfill her duty and opening her yo-yo.

"No more evildoing for you, little akuma. Time to de-evilize!" She threw her spinning tool towards the akuma, catching it. "Gotcha!"

"Bye bye, little butterfly." The purified butterfly quickly flew away before she threw her yo-yo* into the air. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

It explodes into a blast of energy. Thousands of ladybugs started flying across Paris, fixing all done damages: Chloé was returned to her room, Alya was returned to Marinette's house and Prime Queen turned back into Nadja. "W-w-what just happened?"

"Pound it!" The trio exclaimed, doing a three-way fist bump.

"So, I believe we have a lot to discuss…" Bloodhound started.

Ladybug nodded. "Shall we meet up somewhere more private?"

"How about the hotel's roof? No one can see nor hear us up there." Chat suggested. The two superheroines agreed.

"Okay then, you guys go ahead." The dog heroine stated. "I still have one more thing to do." The crime fighting duo nodded and left the kitchen. Bloodhound then turned to the slightly dazed Nadja, holding out a hand to her. "Are you okay, Ms. Chamack?"

"Uh yes, I am… thank you." The woman replied uncertainly. Accepting the heroine's hand, she let herself being pulled up. "I'm so sorry. You must be so ashamed of me right now–"

"No, no, no, no! It's not your fault, Ms. Chamack." Bloodhound reassured the despairing reporter. "If anyone's at fault here, it's Hawk Moth. It was him who used your negative emotions and akumatized you." She then squirmed abashed. "Besides, it is me who has to apologize, for not showing up at the interview. I could have resolved everything about Lass and Blacky, but I chose to stay away. And for that, I'm very sorry."

Bloodhound then looked at Nadja with resolve in her eyes. "But you should know _this_ : I did not appear because I don't care. In fact, I **do** care. An awful lot even. And **this** is the reason I did not appear. Do you understand?"

Nadja nodded slowly. The dog heroine smiled in appreciation when she suddenly gained an idea.

"Your show doesn't deserve to go down the drain. If I'm allowed to make a little suggestion…?" The woman lowered her head and let the girl whisper something into her ear. A smile grew on the former's face.

"I will definitely consider your suggestion. Thank you very much." Nadja smiled in gratitude. Bloodhound only nodded and slowly made her to the kitchen's exit.

Opening the door, she threw her one last smile. "Take care, Ms. Chamack. You daughter must be very proud of you." The door closed behind her.

Nadja continued smiled for a moment… before suddenly freezing up. _Wait a minute! How does she know I have a daughter?!_

* * *

"Prime Queen turned out to be bad news." Hawk Moth murmured. "But soon, I'll be broadcasting the end of Ladybug and Chat Noir!" A low growl escaped his throat. "And that bloody mutt… I will destroy you, Bloodhound! Even if it's the last thing I do!" He shouted as the window closed.

* * *

Bloodhound quickly climbed up the sturdy walls of the luxury hotel. The zodiac duo was already up there, patiently waiting for their partner.

"Alright, I'm back." Hauling herself up, she immediately went next to Chat, looking expectantly at the red heroine. "So, Lass… you have something to tell Blacky and me?"

Ladybug nodded. It was now or never. "Guys… I'm sorry. I know that no amount of apologies can fix what I have caused today." She turned to the dog heroine. "You were right, Hound. I should have told you about the kiss. I just… I thought that wasn't so relevant at that time. I thought the kiss doesn't matter… but I was wrong." She paused for a moment. "I'm sorry I made you think that I don't trust you."

Bloodhound sighed. "Apology accepted, Lass. I must apologize too, for pressuring you so much." Looking solemnly to the ground, she continued. "There's something you need to know… I… I have a hard time trusting other people. I've been betrayed a lot of times before, and it made me extremely paranoid. It was already hard for me to trust you guys. So when I saw that kiss…" She trailed off, slowly directing her gaze back up. "… you can understand now why I was so mad back there, don't you?"

The two superheroes were both speechless. "Whoa… Bloodhound… w-we had no idea…" Chat stammered.

Ladybug unexpectedly shot forward and surprised Bloodhound by taking her hand into her own. "Bloodhound, I swear on my honor as a superhero that I won't _ever_ break my promises to you again! It was risky of you to tell us that, but I'm glad you did anyway."

Bloodhound smiled, playfully holding out pinky. "Pinky promise?"

Ladybug rolled her eyes, but accepted anyway. "Pinky promise." They enveloped each other in a quick hug, before Bloodhound lightly pushed the red heroine away.

"Okay, enough with the touchy-feely stuff. There's still one more person left…" She nodded towards Chat Noir.

Ladybug's eyes met the cat eyes of the blond. She could see various emotions held within, but there was also still that hurt from before. And she was determined to remove that hurt once and for all.

Approaching him slowly, she took a deep breath. "Chaton… y-you know I'm not good with words… b-but I want you to know that… that I never meant to insult you in any way. I was very angry… and I wasn't thinking…"

Chat nodded. "I know. It was the heat of the moment–"

"But I also want you to know," Ladybug interrupted him before he could go on. "that I meant every single word when I was locked up in the freezer. And that you do matter to me…" She gave him a sad smile. "Chat, I couldn't imagine having a better partner than you. You're always there for me, always give me a shoulder to lean on. But most important… _you_ are the reason I'm Ladybug today."

"Do you remember our first akuma, Stoneheart?" The cat hero nodded numbly. "When everyone had lost faith in me, you were the only one who stuck with me. You encouraged me to continue, you built me up… if it wasn't for you, I would have given up long ago." She gave him a grateful smile. "And for that, I can't thank you enough. I'm sorry for never telling you that. I thought this would only fuel your ego… but now I realize how much you need this. I hope you can forgive me, for both insulting you and not telling you how much you really mean to me, as both friend _and_ partner."

Chat couldn't breathe. His heart was throbbing so much like it was about to jump out of his ribcage. Tears threatened to leave his eyes as he gazed at the girl of his dreams, who actually managed to make him fall in love with her even more. He felt like laughing and crying at the same time. This was simply too much for him.

 _I love you. Good gracious, I love you, Ladybug! I love you so much!_

"Come here." he breathed instead, holding out his arms to her. Ladybug beamed and threw herself into his embrace. Chat squeezed her as close to him as possible, relishing in the fact that he was holding his Lady and lightly nuzzled her hair with his nose. Euphoria streamed through his veins…

 _Purrrrrrrrrrrr…_

Both Ladybug and Chat Noir perked up at this, the former in surprise, the latter in embarrassment.

"Did… did you just purr?" the red heroine mused in wonder.

"Uh… no way!" Chat nervously tried to deny, feeling his cheeks burn up.

Ladybug smirked at this and embraced him once again, the purring sound returning. _Liar…_

"Well then, Chaton," she grinned, surprising her partner a bit. "feel free to purr as much as you want. _You deserve it._ "

Euphoria returned immediately and Chat practically crushed her to him, his purring intensifying. He grinned goofily and closed his eyes, sighing in utter bliss. _This is the best day of my life…_

Bloodhound smiled warmly at the scene in front of her. When she caught Chat Noir's gaze, she proudly gave him a thumbs-up and wink to which the cat hero only grinned wider, if that was physically even possible. _You've done good, Blacky, you've done good._

 _Beep beep beep!_

The silence was interrupted by the trio's Miraculouses giving the first warning.

"Looks like it's time to head home now." Bloodhound chuckled. "I don't know about you guys, but I actually want to sleep in for once."

"Me too." The still embracing heroes agreed and separated from the hug.

"How about we skip patrol tomorrow?" Ladybug then suggested. "We've had a long and tiring night, I think we all deserve a break."

"Fine with me." Bloodhound replied, while Chat Noir merely nodded. The zodiac duo then pulled out their respective tools.

"Have a good night!" Ladybug exclaimed before throwing out her yo-yo and zip-lining away, Chat following suit soon after.

Bloodhound sighed in contentment before leaping away as well. _They're such dorks._ She chuckled inwardly. _But I wouldn't want it any other way._

* * *

 **A/N: Phew, finally done! Enjoyed the twist to the episode? I certainly did XD And I figured since the girls are allowed to watch an interview at night (*cough* Manon *cough*) why shouldn't it be a Saturday?  
**

 **Lukas Ivanov, ladies and gentlemen! Alexa's annoying, but lovable younger brother won't be appearing as frequently as his sister, but he will have his moments too ;)**

 **For those who can't understand what he and Alexa are saying, I'll sum it up for you: _Lukas wants to watch TV too, but Alexa is against it, causing him to whine. When she finally allows him, he thanks her in an excited manner and agrees to only watch the interview, then heading straight to bed again. During the kissing scene, Lukas asks her if she's okay, to which she replies with wanting to go to the toilet. Last part, Alexa (as Bloodhound) claims to be in her room naked, then Lukas apologizing, only wanting to wish her a good night, which she reciprocates._ And that's it :)  
**

 **Special thanks to Starshine89 for helping me out with the argument scene! He's a very talented writer and I highly recommend you to check out his OC insert story _The Lost Miraculous - Tales of Ladybug, Cat Noir & Silver Lightning_. It has way more humor in it than mine, so if you want a good laugh, head over to his fic ;)**

 **Alrighty then, like always, reviews are greatly appreciated and remember:**

 **Stay cool and so long!**

 ***I once read a story where Ladybug didn't use her Lucky Charm, instead throwing her yo-yo in the air for the Miraculous Ladybug. I know it probably clashes with canon, but this is technically still an AU** **¯\\_(ツ)_/¯**

 **And one last thing: Can you guess what Bloodhound suggested to Nadja? :)**


	10. Dragonfist

**A/N: Hey folks, long time no see, huh? It's been exactly four months now since my last update. I could really kick myself for making you wait so long, but alas, school and personal stuff kept me away from here ':(**

 **I don't want to say a lot to this, just that this is by far the longest, as well as hardest chapter I've written yet. It's also my first fictional 'episode'. Though I'm sure future fictional episodes might be even longer... anyway, this chapter's akuma is GaoGad's Dragonfist! I hope I did your character justice, dude! And if not... well... at least I tried ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯**

 **Warning: This chapter contains a lot of swearing and violence! The story is not rated T for nothing, so read on your own behalf!**

 **to _Starshine89_ (PM): Thank you very much, lad! I'm glad you like both Alexa's brother and the German speaking. And thanks for the compliment on my first episodic chapter too, I really appreciate it! In fact, thanks so much for _all_ your compliments. They really warm my heart ^w^**

 **Ah yes, I'm actually kinda proud of all the fluff. And the scene at the end... it was actually inspired by Nattikay's comic on Tumblr, where Chat purrs and Ladybug says he's cute :D**

 **Don't mention it. After all that happened, you deserve way more than just a shout-out. In fact, I may or may not have a little surprise for you at the end of the chapter ;)**

 **to _GaoGod (Guest)_ : I admit, I may have over-exaggerated a bit with the argument, BUT! Alexa is still developing her character since she moved to Paris. Her past had shaken her to the core, which is why she has had some serious issues with trusting other people. But because she saw a chance to start anew, she suppressed those insecurities. Of course such things can never disappear in one day, which is why she reacted so vulnerably to being 'betrayed'. But like I said, she's still developing. I hope this chapter will show that Bloodhound is not without her faults ':|**

 **And I'm really sorry for making you wait so long! Like I said, I tried my best with your OC. I hope you haven't abandoned me yet ':)**

 **Oh, and trust me on this: A volcano would freeze over before I would even dream of abandoning my stories. No matter how long it'll take, I'll finish them all! That's a vow I take to the grave -_-**

 **to _The Sensational SpiderDom321_ : I hope you're doing better than four months prior, Dom! I was really worried about then ':)**

 **I'm glad people reacted well to both Lukas and the German language. At first I wasn't sure if the latter would a good idea, but then I thought "Eh, what the heck, let's do it!" And boy, am I glad I did :D**

 **As aforementioned, I admit to have exaggerated a bit with the argument. I wanted to test things out a bit, since I can't ever seem to find the golden mean in all of this. But as I said too, Alexa is still trying to adapt to her new life. Old habits die hard** ** **¯\\_(ツ)_/¯****

 ** **to _Gry22_ : 1. idea: This sounds really sweet. I'll definitely consider this ^w^****

 ** **2\. idea: Sounds good too. Alexa enjoys singing, though same can't be said for dancing. Meh, until then, Ryan will have taught her a few dance moves ':)****

 ** **Your ideas are great as always, thank you :3****

 _ ** **Disclaimer: I don't own this chapter's akuma, it belongs to GaoGod.****_

* * *

" _Ladies and gentleman,_ _we are about to land in Paris. Please fasten your seatbelts and return your seat backs to their full upright and locked position. Thank you for having flown with Air France._ _We wish you a pleasant stay!_ "

As the passenger aircraft slowly descended towards the earth, a young man absentmindedly stared outside the airplane window. He seemed to be in his late twenties and had tan skin, almond-shaped hazel eyes, neatly combed raven hair and a barely visible Vandyke beard. His clothes consisted of a plain black kimono with a thin golden collar hem and a small golden adornment on the left half of his chest. He wore a black haori over it, with his family's emblem: a yin-yang symbol in the form of two dragons. He also wore a grey hakama and a pair of geta on his feet. A grey belt around his waist completed the outfit.

He reached into his kimono and retrieved a necklace: a golden amulet with a golden dragon on a platter made of jade. "Kono tōnamento do kachimasu yo. (I will win the tournament.)" he murmured, clenching it tightly. "Sofu no tame ni. (For you, Grandfather.)" Putting the amulet back, the young man waited patiently for the aircraft to land.

When he entered Charles de Gaulle Airport and grabbed his luggage, he came up to the passport control, where his identity was checked. His name was Takeru Ryūan, he was 25 years old, from Japan and currently single. The border policeman returned the passport, bowing to the young man as he went through the gate. Wasting no time, Takeru called the closest cab to drive him to Hôtel des Champs-Elysées.

You see… an aforementioned MMA tournament will be held open air at the Place Charles-de-Gaulle close to the Arc de Triomphe, where the young man will participate in. Many years ago, his Sofu Yamato Ryūan emerged victorious, bringing honor over the family. And Takeru was determined to make his old man proud by winning it too, the amulet as a memento of him.

He trained many years, honing his karate skills day by day since he was a little boy. By now, he was a fourth-degree black belt, a Yondan, and he was very proud of his accomplishment.

"Alright, this is it." the cab driver exclaimed in a jolly manner. "That would be 50 bucks please." Takeru wordlessly fished the right amount of money out of his pocket and handed the banknotes over. He bowed to the driver in respect and got out of the car. "A man of few words, I see. Well, you probably know what you're doing. Anyway, have a good day, sir." The cab driver then drove off again.

Takeru rolled his eyes. He had to admit, his French wasn't the best… but it didn't mean he couldn't _understand_ what other people were saying! Some preferred translators, but he couldn't stand them. Mainly because of them sometimes mixing words up so badly that he had to restrain himself from cringing. But Takeru was in no way an impolite person and would patiently endure those moments, albeit with difficulty. Gestures and facial expressions therefore were more appealing to him.

Without a word, he entered the lobby and checked in, grabbing the room key and taking the lift to his room he rented. It had an Art Deco style, completely painted in a greyish-silver color with a bathroom, a double bed, a flat-screen satellite TV and a minibar.

Takeru put his luggage away and looked at the clock. 1.07 p.m. The tournament started at three, so he still had enough time to register himself. But as people say: The sooner the better. Besides, since he was staying here, it wouldn't hurt to explore this place a little bit more before he left again.

With that thought in mind, the raven-haired left the hotel again and made for the Place Charles-de-Gaulle. If only his Sofu could see him now…

* * *

 _ **Later this afternoon…**_

Yapp helplessly watched his chosen rummage in the wardrobe. "Are you sure you still have it?" he asked uncertainly.

"Of course I'm sure!" Alexa replied in an annoyed manner. "I never threw it away, so it _must_ be in here somewhere!" She threw a few shirts outside, grumbling quietly. Yapp dodged the incoming clothes thrown towards him, while at the same time trying to hold in his laughter about his chosen's absentmindedness. After a few more moments, she finally found what she was searching for.

"Aha!" With a triumphal cry, she pulled out a pair of white garments. "See? Told ya I still have it." A subtly pointed look from her then gave Yapp the signal to turn around and not peek. He heard her take of her clothes, throwing them onto the floor and putting the white garments on.

"Okay, you can watch now." The dog kwami turned around to see his chosen wearing trousers and a short-sleeved jacket made of pure cotton, held together by a green belt. Alexa then went into a battle stance and smirked. "So… what do you think?"

Yapp awed at the brunette, his tail wagging in excitement. "You look like a real martial artist."

Alexa giggled. "That's the point, bud. Back in Germany, I used to practice karate and this is my old gi. Good thing it still fits." She threw a few punches into the air. "I never thought I would start again after abandoning training when I reached my teens. I hope I still have it in me."

Yapp snorted in amusement. The only reason his chosen started this old hobby of hers again was because Ryan practiced it too and - no matter how much she denied it - she wanted to be as close to him as possible. And since today was a trial lesson in the dojo, Alexa was determined to show the honey-blond her karate skills as a Rokukyū.

Speaking of the trial lesson… "When is this trial lesson again?" The dog kwami asked his chosen.

"At four. Why?"

Yapp glanced at the clock and his eyes widened. "Uh, Alexa? Have you looked at the time?"

"Huh?" Said girl glanced at the clock… and then gasped sharply. " _Quarter to four_?! OH NO, I'M LATE!" She immediately started ripping the gi from her - causing Yapp to yelp and cover his eyes - and reached for her scattered clothes, putting them on one by one. "How could I forget the time?! I even intercalated it!" She then glared at her kwami as she stuffed her gi into a black backpack. "Yapp, why didn't you say anything?!"

"I beg your pardon? I was just as clueless about the current time as you were!" Yapp uttered incredulously. "Besides, if you wouldn't have searched for your gi _at the last moment_ , you wouldn't be under such time pressure!" He crossed his arms. "And just so you know: I'm a kwami, not a timekeeper."

Alexa groaned. _God… he's right. I'm such a dawdler._ She was in absolutely no mood to deal with this right now, instead grabbing her backpack and writing a sticky note before leaving her room, Yapp on her heels. She stuck the note to the door and sprinted out of the apartment.

 _Off to karate training._

 _Will be back by supper time._

 _Alexa_

* * *

The brunette ran as fast as she could. She ran through the Place du Vosges where she saw Marinette and Alya hanging out. "Hey Alex! What's the rush?" the blogger exclaimed.

"Sorry girls! No time! Gotta dash!" Alexa called out, passing them without halting once. She ignored the confused glances and just continued her running.

(Alya turned to Marinette with a cheeky smile. "Now who does she remind me of?" Marinette blushed indignantly and stuck out her tongue at the grinning brunette.)

Alexa barely passed the school when her lungs were burning so much that she couldn't hold it back anymore. She turned into an empty alleyway, where she leaned against a brick wall and panted heavily.

"I must say," Yapp poked his head out of the pouch. "Your speed equals that of a cheetah. But sadly, so does your stamina."

Alexa rolled her eyes in annoyance. "That doesn't… get me… anywhere…" she wheezed. Still in a daze, she glanced at her watch, which read 3.51 p.m. "Nine minutes left! The dojo is on the other side of Paris; I'll never make it on time in that state!" She moaned. What should she do? Just _what_ should she do?!

A cab was out of question. She didn't have money with her.

The metro would be an option, but she didn't know when the next one went off, or which one went towards her destination.

Her parents were both working, so being driven was out too.

 _Oh, it's hopeless! I'll never make it there on time… wait…_ she perked up suddenly. _Unless…_

"Yapp? Would you mind… well… you know?" she uncertainly asked her kwami.

Said dog kwami came flying out of the pouch, crossing his arms in an annoyed manner. "Well, I _wouldn't_ mind if a certain someone didn't rant at me today…"

"Yapp please!" Alexa cried in despair. "I'm sorry that I was so mean to you! You were right, I shouldn't have dilly-dallied and I should have paid more attention to the time! But please, I beg you, you're my only hope!"

Yapp hummed in thought. "Fine, I let transform… under _one_ condition."

"What is it?"

"I get to eat twice the amount of sausages today I usually get."

Alexa stared blankly at Yapp's smug expression. She knew she had a reached an impasse here. Becoming Bloodhound was her last resort to get to the dojo on time, so she either agreed to the deal…

… or kissed the training with Ryan goodbye.

Which she wouldn't even dream of!

Sighing, she finally relented. "Fine, you got yourself a deal." The two shook hands - well, to be exact, Alexa shook her finger with Yapp's paw - when she suddenly cupped him in her hands and held him close, surprising him a bit. "Thank you, bud. What would I do without you?"

Yapp giggled at her words and nuzzled her. "Probably sit at home all day and eat your weight in chips and pretzels." That got a good laugh out of the brunette. Because it was so damn true!

Since she became a superheroine, she had been exercising more than she used to do before and as a result, her scrawny body was gaining a few muscles, which not only surprised her parents but _her_ as well.

Additionally, she unknowingly had been improving on her stamina as well… though, seemingly not enough to run to the dojo in one piece. However, with more 'exercising', the brunette was sure she could manage even that someday.

 _Seems like becoming Bloodhound has its good sides too._ she chuckled inwardly. A quick glance at her watch snapped her back into reality. _No dilly-dallying again! Time's running out!_

"Yapp, Bark on!"

Bloodhound immediately jumped onto the nearest rooftop and pulled out her bat, activating her GPS device. _Fastest way through the Place the Gaulle, huh? Alrighty then._ The very next moment, she became a brown blur rushing across the roofs of Paris. She winced when she could hear people cheering for her as she jumped over their heads, seemingly having noticed the dog heroine during her mad dash for the dojo. _So much for staying in the dark…_

Her dog ears suddenly twitched when she heard booming voices from the Arc de Triomphe. Curiosity began to nag at her, prompting her to check out the commotion. _Why now?! I'm in a hurry!_ When the feeling continued to remain, she begrudgingly gave in. _Fine! But only for a moment!_ Her legs started to drag her across the roofs towards the huge arc.

Curiosity. Her biggest weakness.

* * *

Takeru felt beads of sweat roll down his temple. His opponent was a Korean taekwondo fighter with a black pixie cut and auburn eyes - What was his name again? Park Lee? - and the last one he had to defeat in order to win the tournament. It was a long and tiring hour for the young martial artist, which would soon finally pay off once his opponent was finally down.

So far, he fought several martial artists. Some were easy, some were harder, but he managed to defeat them all. Now he was only one step away from victory.

After an agonizingly long while, he finally managed to find an opening and struck his opponent's torso with a karate chop before delivering a roundhouse kick to his head, which caused him to slam against the cage, stunned.

Now was his chance.

One more and he was down.

But just as he drew his arm back for the final blow, something behind the taekwondo fighter caught his eye. He squinted at it for a moment… before his eyes went wide like saucers. There, approximately hundred meters away on a little roof, sat a brown creature with… dog ears?

"Chairo no inu? (A brown dog?)" he murmured bewildered.

Their eyes met for a short moment before the being flinched and fled the area on all fours. Takeru's eyes remained on the same spot, his head still reeling from what he just saw…

 **WHAM!**

He suddenly found himself lying on the floor, with a dull pain throbbing in his head. Looking up in a daze, he saw the Korean smile smugly at him.

Takeru paled. He lost the tournament. He _lost_.

The karateka slowly stood up, his gaze still staring at the ground in disbelief. All the training, all the time he sacrificed for this event, all the promises… all for nothing.

Despite this, he still bowed to his opponent in respect as the referee announced him this year's MMA tournament champion. He immediately left the cage and went to the changing cubicles, his frown getting deeper and deeper with each passing second.

In this very moment, the window in Hawk Moth's lair opened. "Ah… a warrior's rage of having lost is big in its own. But all the more if there is someone else to blame." He held out his hand for a butterfly to land and infused it with black energy before releasing it. "Fly away, my little akuma! And bring him back his motivation to fight!" The akuma didn't waste any time and fluttered rapidly towards his destination.

Meanwhile Takeru was breathing in and out, trying vainly to tame his anger. Everything he worked so hard for… it all just went down the drain. All because of this _damned mutt_ … He slowly descended to his knees, clenching the amulet tightly. "Sofu o yurushite… (Forgive me, Grandfather…)"

Too deeply absorbed in his grieving, he didn't notice the corrupted butterfly infusing itself into the amulet.

" _Dragonfist, I'm Hawk Moth!_ " the martial artist heard the villain's voice in his head. " _To think you would have won the tournament if not for that bloody mutt distracting you. And now you want to avenge you honor, don't you?_ "

"Hai, Hawk Moth-sama."

" _Good._ " Hawk Moth grinned maliciously. " _In case you're wondering, this was Bloodhound, one of Paris' resident superheroes. With the power I'll give you, it will be a piece of cake for you to destroy her. And after you do, Ladybug and Chat Noir will be helpless without their watchdog and you'll bring me their Miraculouses._ "

Takeru nodded and slowly raised from his kneeling position. "Fukushū wa amai… (Revenge is sweet…)" Those were his last words before his transformation began.

* * *

 _Almost there!_

Bloodhound beamed as she saw the dojo from her location. She immediately made her way towards the building, releasing her transformation and entering the girls' locker room. "Stay here, Yapp. There's a sausage in my pocket you can munch on." The dog kwami grinned and did as his chosen said.

Alexa changed her clothes in record time and rushed into the hall, where she saw the students being assembled. The teacher turned around at the stomping noise and eyed her critically, sending slight shivers down her spine. "I see we have a last-minute rookie among us. Who might you be, young lady?"

"That's Alexa Ivanov, Sensei Raoul!" Said girl's heart skipped a beat when she heard Ryan's voice sound from among the students. "She's a friend of mine who wanted to attend today's trial lesson." The honey-blond waved at her with a grin, to which she shyly waved back.

The teacher continued observing her accurately. He had messy dark brown hair and was dressed in the same attire as his students, only his belt was black and slightly threadbare. His eyes were periwinkle and oozed wisdom, though it didn't nearly equal the one Master Fu possessed.

 _Thinking of Master Fu… I wonder if Mom has paid him a visit already…_

"I see… Since you are a green belt, please place yourself between those two." He pointed at Ryan and Bruce - whom Alexa surprisingly didn't notice before - and felt her heartbeat quicken once again. Her excitement made it impossible for her to give an answer, so she simply nodded and went to her place. When the sensei started discussing organizational matters, Ryan faced her with another grin.

"Hey Alex," he whispered. "Glad you could make it. I already thought you wouldn't come."

"As if I would miss the opportunity to kick your butt." The brunette smirked.

"Oh, is that so? Who says I won't be the one to kick your butt?" Ryan grinned back. "After all, you're a _green_ belt and I'm a _blue_ belt."

"Well then, we'll see who the more skilled one is… during Jiyu Kumite*." Alexa winked.

"Challenge accepted." Ryan purred. By this time, they were too deep in their banter to notice the other leaning closer by each retort. So close, their noses were almost touching…

"Ugh, get a room, you two!" Bruce gagged suddenly. "You two being lovey-dovey makes me wanna barf!"

The two immediately sprung away from each other, blushing profusely. "We're not being lovey-dovey!" Alexa exclaimed indignantly, startling a student nearby with her outburst.

"Miss Ivanov, Mr. MacAuley, is there something you would like to share with the others?" Sensei Raoul asked with a raised eyebrow, annoyance clearly seen on his face. Both blushes intensified with shame while they shook their heads no. The sensei frowned disapprovingly at them and was about to open his mouth and give them a lecture, when–

 **CRASH!**

Out of nowhere, a creature broke through the glass window of the dojo, sending shards flying in every direction and startling those present. It wore a crimson red keikogi with a black cloth around the waist and black shoes. A beige, hideous looking Oni mask with golden eyes, a red jaw, and humongous crooked teeth covered its face, with a vicious snarl that sent freezing chills down the people's spines.

Alexa felt her eye twitch. _An akuma? Here?! Oh, why now?! Now, of all fucking times!_

" **Doko?! Inu doko?! (Where is she?! Where is the dog?!)** " it demanded in a dark and menacing voice. The students were too frozen up in fear to answer him in any form, angering the akuma even more. Without a warning, it spat crimson-red fire onto them, everyone yelping and trying to dodge the dangerous looking flames.

Alexa was too deep in her anger to notice the flames coming right at her, as well as to register the desperate call from next to her. Before she could even blink, she was tackled to the side. Opening her eyes, she gasped when she saw Ryan above her. Her whole face went red when she noticed that he was _straddling_ her.

Ryan didn't seem to though, instead frowning worriedly at the brunette. "Are you okay, Alex? Did you burn yourself?"

Alexa was too stunned to answer. Her heartbeat was completely out of control and her face reddened even more. _Verdammt! Say something, you bozo!_ Unable to, she chose to simply shake her head, Ryan sighing in relief at that, smiling at her; the girl couldn't help but smile back.

 _Ugh, why does he have to be so… so… handsome? Mari was so right. I_ am _a basket case…_

" **BLOODHOUND!** " the akuma yelled, Alexa perking up on that. " **Kimi o mitsukete,** _ **utsu**_ **yo! (I will find you, and** _ **destroy**_ **you!)** " And with that, he sent a last stream of flames onto a wall of the dojo before leaping through the broken window.

"Bloodhound? Why would he target her?" the brunette heard Ryan murmur quietly; to her or himself she wasn't sure. His face was scrunched up in confusion, though his eyes also held something else she couldn't identify.

Alexa was also completely bewildered. The akuma is after _her_? Why? Did she do something? She certainly couldn't remember crossing anyone… unless…

… It happened _involuntarily_!

She racked her brain. Wasn't there a moment where a contestant from that tournament had looked up to her in wonder? Had she seriously distracted him? She gulped. _I really messed up this time. Lass won't be too happy about this…_

Alexa then glanced to the wall the akuma spat fire onto. Despite the burnt state, she managed to recognize characters: 龍拳

 _Huh… what does that mean…?_ She squinted at the calligraphy. _Looks like Mandarin… or is it Kanji…?_

" **Don't fuck with me, asshole!** "

Alexa and Ryan flinched at the scream, turning their head to see two students headbutting each other with venomous glares. Flames radiated from their bodies, like those the akuma just spat at them. However, they didn't seem to burn them.

" **I fuck with whoever I want, motherfucker!** " the second student yelled back, Alexa and Ryan both flinching simultaneously at the vulgar tongues they were expressing.

Alexa then noticed a spark inside the first student's eyes, his rage seemingly having passed its peak. She paled. _I need to stop him!_ The girl threw Ryan off her, ignoring his surprised yelp and rushed towards the snapping boy.

" **Why you little piece of shit!** " Throwing his arm back, he intended to punch the other into his face, only to be stopped by Alexa, who put herself between the two teens. She held her arms up in the air, on the one hand, to protect the boy from being punched and on the other hand to protect herself.

"Whoa whoa whoa, easy there! No need to go agro! We're all friends, remember?" Alexa tried to reason. "Let's just calm down for a second and–"

" **ZIP IT, YOU BITCH!** " the first student screamed and threw his arm back again. Alexa yelped and immediately shielded herself from incoming attacks, clenching her eyes shut in fear.

 _This is getting way out of hand! The hell is going on?! Why do those two want to rip each other's throats out?!_

"HEY! Both of you quit it!" Ryan exclaimed, getting in between Alexa and the two angered teenagers and held one back.

"Yeah, dudes! This ain't funny anymore!" Bruce agreed, holding the other back.

" **GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME, I'M GOING TO SLICE HIS THROAT OPEN!** "

 _Well, there goes my appetite…_ Ryan and Bruce thought simultaneously, disgusted and inwardly gagging from the remark.

" **THEN COME FUCKING GET ME, YOU IRONIC CHAP-WEARING ASSHOLE!** "

" **THE FUCK YOU JUST SAID TO ME?!** "

" **YOU HEARD ME, YOU HAPPY-GO-LUCKY BASTARD!** "

" **YOU ARE FUCKING DEAD!** "

" **WE ALL DIE SOMEDAY, THAT'S HOW LIFE WORKS, YOU LITTLE SHIT!** "

Alexa noticed the flames around the students increased as they got angrier.

It was like watching an anime character become more and more furious by each second. Only this was _real_.

 _Those flames… the akuma must have rage-inducing powers. That, is not good._

"All of you, calm down!" Sensei Raoul tried his best to calm everyone down, albeit to no success.

Alexa nervously gnawed her nails. _I have to get away. Somewhere to transform and alert Lass and Blacky. But how? With these two hotheads about to murder each other? Ugh, think Alexa, think…_

A light bulb then lit up above the brunette's head. "Ryan, Bruce, Sensei, we have to keep these two away from each other! If they're let near each other, I can't imagine what will happen!"

The three nodded and started backing up from one another, the akuma-possessed students still yelling insults and swears and threatening to kill each other.

"We have to tie and lock them up! They can't get near each other that way!" Ryan yelled, struggling more and more to hold the guy back. "Bruce! To the lockers! QUICK!"

The two buds then quickly dragged the squirming students into the boys' locker room while the sensei carefully ushered the others outside. Alexa sensed a golden opportunity to transform and rushed back into the girls' locker room.

Yapp was rolling around in one of his chosen's socks when he saw the girl barge into the room. "Alexa? Is the lesson over already?" he wondered. "And why do you look like you've seen a ghost?"

"Yapp… window… akuma… fire… rage… locker…" the brunette bent over and panted heavily.

Yapp held up his paws. "Okay, first: Calm down. Second: You leave out too many words. And third: THERE WAS AN AKUMA?!"

Alexa winced at the high-pitched squeak, but nodded nonetheless. "Yes, and we have no time to lose." She then straightened herself again and pumped her fist in determination. "Time to unleash the dog!" _And fix the mess I caused._

"Yapp, Bark on! Aaroooo!"

With suit and mask donned - once again - Bloodhound proceeded to go up on the dojo's roof to try and track the akuma down. Her dog ears twitched, hearing roars and screams in the distance. And on each burnt wall she could spot the same characters again: 龍拳

 _If only I could read them…_ the dog heroine sighed before shaking her head violently. _GAH! Focus, Hound! Alert your partners._ Pulling out her bat, she detached the grip and dialed Ladybug. A crossed out call sign immediately appeared on the screen.

 _Verdammt!_ she cursed. _How am I supposed to alert Lass while she's_ _ **detransformed**_ _? And something tells me Blacky is in the same boat…_ Pinching the bridge of her nose, Bloodhound let out a stressed out sigh escape her lips. "And to think I could have prevented all of this if I hadn't been so nosy…" She growled. "Curse you, stupid curiosity!"

 _But this also wouldn't have happened if you had paid attention to the time._ her inner voice reprimanded her. _Besides, is calling them really the_ _ **only**_ _way to alert them?_ The dog heroine raised an eyebrow in bewilderment. _Think about it! What provides information about every akuma fight in the area?_

…

…

…

"Of course!" Bloodhound exclaimed. "The Ladyblog! Why haven't I thought of it _sooner_?" She quickly entered said website and opened up a forum. "That way I can alert both Lass and Blacky _and_ the citizens! But how should I go about it…?" An idea then formed in her head as she began typing like a madwoman. And with a last satisfied nod, the dog heroine posted the message in the forum before reattaching the bat and dashing towards the faint sounds of the still running amok akuma.

 _Guys… please hurry up…_

* * *

 _ **Ding!**_

Alya perked up at the sound of her phone. Unlocking it, she nearly fell out of the bench as she saw a message on her blog from _Bloodhound_ of all people and then began squealing loudly.

"Alya? What's wrong?" Marinette asked her bemused.

The brunette simply raised her phone to reveal the sent message:

 _Attention, everyone! Akuma sighted in the 17_ _th_ _Arrondissement! He wears a red robe, a dragon mask and spits fire! The flames don't burn, but make you feel more and more aggressive to the point of violence! Please stay hidden, everyone, help is on the way! Over & out!_

Marinette gasped. _An akuma…?!_

"Girl, I'm sorry, but I need to check this out!" Alya exclaimed and sprung up from the bench. "An akuma who spits fire is definitely gonna be one of the biggest scoops yet! Wish me luck!"

The blackette didn't even manage to mutter out a goodbye as her bestie made a mad dash towards the akuma's location.

"Looks like Hawk Moth decided to strike today after all." Tikki said as she poked her head out of her chosen's purse.

"And I was so excited to have a quiet day for once." Marinette sighed before shrugging helplessly. "Ah well, time to transform." She hid behind the bench.

"Tikki, Spots on!"

* * *

Adrien read the dog heroine's message on his computer and rushed to the bin, where his lazy kwami was devouring his precious cheese. "Plagg! An akuma is on the loose! We have to go!"

Plagg groaned. "Oh come on! We were just about to get to know each other!"

Adrien rolled his eyes. "You will have plenty of time for that later. Now it's time to transform." He ignored the kwami's whine and straightened up.

"Plagg, Claws out!"

* * *

Meanwhile, the dog heroine was leaning against a chimney of a random roof, impatiently waiting for her partners to arrive.

 _Come on, come on… Lass, Blacky, where are you…?_

The sound of a zip-line pulled her out of her distressed state as her partners both landed on the roof.

"We received your message, Hound. Where's the akuma?" Ladybug asked her.

" **Inu doko?!** " the akuma's voice sounded somewhere from far away, startling the crime-fighting duo.

"Does that answer your question, Lass?" Bloodhound deadpanned.

"Man, look at this mess!" Chat murmured, observing the various burnt walls and buildings with a smirk. "Seems like someone was simply _burning_ to mark his territory."

Ladybug groaned at the pun while Bloodhound simply facepalmed. "More like to play with a flamethrower." the brunette retorted before perking up. "Speaking of… can anybody read those characters?" She motioned towards a nearby wall. "The akuma has been leaving them everywhere since his first attack."

Chat hummed, squinting at the characters 龍拳 and carefully tracing the calligraphy with his index finger. After a few seconds, he grinned brightly. "Clearly Mandarin! The first character is romanized as 'lóng' and means 'dragon' while the other one is romanized as 'quán' and means 'fist'. So combined, we have the word 'lóngquán', thus 'dragonfist'. That must be the akuma's name." He turned around and smirked at the slightly gobsmacked girls. "Did I mention that I'm tutored in Chinese?"

Bloodhound was the first one to mentally pick up her jaw from the ground and let out a low, appreciative whistle. "Not bad, Blacky. I must say, I'm impressed."

"I didn't know you practiced Chinese, Chat." Ladybug awed at her partner.

The cat hero smiled softly at his ladylove. "There are a lot of things you don't know about me, M'Lady." He took her hand and pressed a kiss against the knuckles with a wink. "But I'm always happy to be of service to you."

Ladybug rolled her eyes with a fond smile and pulled her hand out of his grip. "Silly kitty…" She then turned to her other partner. "Now that we sorted this out, let's take care of the true problem. Let's go!"

"Err yeah… about that–" Bloodhound began nervously but didn't get a chance to finish as the red heroine threw out her yo-yo towards the akuma's direction and flew away. _I'm so in for a scolding when this is over._ the brunette gulped. She turned her head towards the still remaining blond, who gazed at the way Ladybug went to with a dreamy smile.

"Isn't she just the sweetest little bug?" Chat murmured fondly and cupped his face. "So helpful, so dedicated, so amazing, so–ow!"

Unable to bear this utter lovesick swooning anymore, Bloodhound slapped the back of his head. Hard. "Focus, Casanova!" she snapped at the wincing cat hero. "You can gush over your Lady once we take down the akuma. Now come on!" She pulled out her bat and jumped onto the next closest rooftop.

Chat Noir glared at the retreating dog heroine while rubbing his throbbing head. "Grouch…" Nonetheless, he took out his baton and pole-vaulted after his teammates.

* * *

It didn't take long before the trio spotted the akuma wreaking havoc near a huge skyscraper, spitting fire and smashing the walls of the building. Some people screamed and ran for their lives, while others had those burning flames around them and looked like they want to rip each other a new one.

"The akuma has done some serious damage around here." Ladybug sighed and turned to her partners. "This may be one of the fiercest ones yet, so we need to give it our best!"

Bloodhound squirmed uncomfortably at that. "Err yeah… Lass, about that–"

"But first we need to figure out where the akuma is." Ladybug interrupted her. "That way we can attack right away without receiving too much damage. Any ideas?"

"Perhaps the mask?" Chat suggested. "Or the sash around his robe? Or…"

"Err, guys? About the akuma–"

"Not now, Hound! Don't you see we're busy?"

Bloodhound stared blankly at the cat hero. _By the time they figure it out, the akuma will learn to fly._ Sighing in defeat, she breathed in deeply through her nostrils, then suddenly started coughing from the additionally inhaled carbon dioxide of the smoke.

The zodiac duo turned to the dog heroine at her involuntary cough, cutting their discussion short. Bloodhound's eyes were teary and her breathing a bit hoarse. "Hound, are you okay?" Ladybug asked her, gazing at her worriedly.

Bloodhound merely nodded. "Dragonfist…" she wheezed. "… he wears a necklace… the akuma is inside it…"

Her partners' eyes widened in surprise. "How did you figure it out so quickly?" Ladybug wondered.

The brunette tapped her slightly burning nose. "I have a dog's nose. I can smell things even from a very far distance away. That's what I was trying to tell you."

Chat deadpanned. "Dammit, I need to pay more attention…"

The girls rolled their eyes. "Come on!" yelled Ladybug, getting out her yo-yo.

"Lass, wait! There's–" Disappointingly, yet not surprisingly, Ladybug just rushed off, Chat Noir racing after her.

Bloodhound facepalmed. "I give up." She then leaped after the heroes.

* * *

" **Bloodhound doko?!** "

"So he's specifically after _you_ , Hound? What happened?" asked a perplexed Chat Noir.

Bloodhound sighed. "That's what I've been trying to tell you before."

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"I've been _trying_ to tell you, but you didn't even let me say anything!"

Ladybug pinched the bridge of her nose. "Okay okay, sorry! We'll talk about that later. Let's take the akuma down."

"Right!" With that exclamation, the heroes went after the target.

Upon noticing the heroes, especially Bloodhound, Dragonfist grew an enraged scowl on his face. Without warning, he spat a burst of flames from his mouth, which the heroes maneuvered around without difficulty.

" **Bloodhound! Kimi o utsu yo!** " the akuma roared.

"Chat, what did he say?!" Ladybug yelled, trying to make herself heard through the noise generated by Dragonfist.

"I… I don't know!" Chat exclaimed. "This doesn't sound like Chinese at all!"

"Because it's Japanese!" Bloodhound yelled. "And the characters must have probably been Kanji, not Mandarin! But the thing is, I can't understand it myself!"

"Curses!"

More flames erupted from the mouth of the akuma, aimed towards the girls, but Chat barged in between and slammed his baton upon the former's masked head. Both were knocked back, Dragonfist from the attack while the blond from the brunt of the stream of flames and slammed against a nearby chimney.

"Chat!"

"Blacky!"

Ladybug proceeded to check up on her partner, only to be held back by the dog heroine. "Lass, no! Unless you want him to scratch your throat open, I suggest you stay away from him!"

Ladybug shuddered and immediately backed away. "So it's two versus one then, huh?"

Bloodhound frowned in thought. "There has to be a way to cool him down…"

Ladybug then got an idea. "Flames are usually extinguished by water. What if we try that?"

"Hm… that could actually work." Bloodhound smiled. A loud roar then reminded her of the current predicament and she frowned again. "But what about Dragonfist? We can't neglect him or else he'll cause more trouble."

"Then I should go and fight him." Ladybug said determinedly. "I can purify the akuma while you–"

"NO!" Bloodhound stated firmly. "Dragonfist is after _me_ , not you. I distracted him and caused him to get akumatized. It's only fair that I fight him." She held up her hand to stop the blackette from protesting. "Lass… it was my fault. I have to take responsibility for the mess I made. Just like you did last week." She pointed at the still dazed Chat Noir, the flames flaring vigorously around him. "Tie him to the chimney and get a bucket of water. If cooling him down won't work, leave him there and join me in the fight."

Ladybug looked unsurely for a moment. A lot of stuff could go wrong with this plan, but alas, they had no other choice. Sighing in defeat, she proceeded to throw her yo-yo at her partner and tie him up, maintaining a distance at the same time.

Bloodhound nodded satisfied, then turned towards the meanwhile bobbed up akuma with a deep frown. _Time to face the music._

Dragonfist, upon meeting the dog heroine's gaze, scowled deeply. Bloodhound remained undeterred and took a deep breath. "Look… I know I messed up and you're mad at me. I probably caused your loss and I'm sorry. But it doesn't have to be this way." Her frown deepened. "Don't let Hawk Moth control you. He's an insane and manipulating bastard who doesn't care for anything and anyone, just himself and gaining what he needs. Don't let him take advantage of you. I know you're better than that." She smiled slightly in triumph when a contemplative look appeared on the akuma's face.

" _Are you really going to let this bloody mutt tell you what the right thing is?!_ " Hawk Moth's voice thundered through Dragonfist's head, making him wince. " _She stripped you of your honor and made you look like a fool! Eliminate her this instant, or I'll eliminate your powers!_ "

The scowl immediately returned to his face. " **Damatte! Tattake koi yo!** (Silence! Come and fight me!)"

Bloodhound sighed in exasperation and got into a fighting stance. _No way out, only through._

A ton of punches and kicks were suddenly thrown her way. The dog heroine tried to dodge and block every single one but realized with growing dread that this task was gonna be easier said than done.

The akuma clearly had far more experience in martial arts than she did, his punches and kicks at lightning speed, practically impossible to overlook. And while Bloodhound was already feeling sweat drops roll down her temple, Dragonfist didn't even seem to break any sweat at all. In fact, there wasn't the slightest trace of exhaustion shown, neither in his movements nor in his face!

 _This can't go on like that. Lass is still tending to Blacky, and I'm slowly starting to lose feeling in my limbs._ She dodged an incoming roundhouse kick to her head. _I gotta find an opening and strike back. But how?_

In a desperate, albeit reckless manner, Bloodhound held out her open hand to catch the incoming punch. The force caused a stinging pain to course through her palm, yet she ignored it in favor of bending his fist upward and grab a hold of his exposed arm.

But instead of twisting it in order to suplex him and hold him in an armlock until Ladybug arrived, as she originally planned to do, the sturdiness of the akuma's arm caught the dog heroine off-guard. It felt smooth and, on closer inspection, seemed to be transparent. It was almost as if he was made of…

 _Glass…?_

Dragonfist seized her distraction and pulled Bloodhound close to him to deliver a strong headbutt to her skull, making her yelp and hold her forehead in pain.

" **Shirōto…** (Amateur…)" she heard him murmur in disdain. Raising her head to meet his eyes, Bloodhound had no time to react to the straight punch coming her way.

Everything suddenly went into slow motion as the akuma's fist collided with her gut. Her eyes slowly bulged out of their sockets and a strangled breath escaped her mouth as his fist went deeper and deeper into her gut. Her feet rose from the ground as she was slowly pushed back.

Then everything went fast-forward again as Bloodhound went flying backward at a tearing pace, crashing back-first through one wall, then a second, then a third, then a fourth until she finally collided with a fifth wall.

Bloodhound groaned in agonizing pain. Every bone in her body hurt like hell, her limbs were completely limp and she was barely aware of her surroundings. The distant call of her name was the only thing her dazed brain registered before her world was consumed by complete darkness…

* * *

"YES! Bloodhound is finally down!" Hawk Moth cheered gloatingly. "Now with her out of the way, getting Ladybug and Chat Noir's Miraculouses will go like clockwork! Victory is finally mine!" He started to laugh like a derisive madman, convinced that he had finally won.

* * *

Chat Noir spluttered as the water thrown into his face began to drip down his body. Ladybug had thrown a bucket of water at him and he was anything but pleased.

"Ladybug! What the hell?!" he cried out incredulously. "Don't you know that cats and water don't mix?"

Ladybug said nothing and simply hugged her cooled down partner. "You're welcome, Chat."

Chat was still a bit peeved, but nonetheless welcomed the feeling of his Lady in his arms.

Until she wasn't.

"We gotta hurry!" the red heroine exclaimed urgently. "Bloodhound is fighting Dragonfist on her own and I don't know for how much longer she can withstand him!"

The moment he comprehended everything, Chat frowned in determination. "Then let's not lose any more time!"

A nod later, the zodiac duo watched in horror as the dog heroine was punched in the gut by the akuma and thrown through two buildings straight before sliding down a wall, barely conscious.

"BLOODHOUND!"

They immediately rushed to their fallen teammate and kneeled down in front of her limp body.

Ladybug shook her lightly by her shoulder. "Hound?" Nothing. "Hound." Still nothing. "She's completely out cold, Chat. What do we do now?"

"We have to hide her somewhere." Chat decided. "She needs to rest. And if Dragonfist finds her, he'll make more than just mincemeat out of her."

Ladybug nodded in agreement. Hiding is the best option, but _where_? Who could they rely on the most?

The red heroine then gained an idea. "Chat, remember when Bloodhound helped us for the first time?"

"You mean when we fought Dodge Ball?"

"Exactly. His name is Ryan MacAuley. Perhaps we could hide her at his home."

Chat perked up at the name. "I know this boy. He is a polite and quite reliable person." He grinned at his partner. "Bloodhound will definitely be safe with him. Good idea, M'Lady."

Ladybug grinned back. "Would you also happen to know where he lives?"

"16 Rue de Navarin." The cat hero carefully scooped the dog heroine into his arms bridal-style. _If only I could hold Ladybug like that one day…_ "Ready when you are, LB."

"Alright, you bring Bloodhound away from here while I stall Dragonfist." When his face scrunched up in worry, Ladybug smiled reassuringly. "Chat… I'll be fine, don't worry about me. What matters now is that Bloodhound is brought to safety, okay?"

Chat remained unsure about his Lady's plan but nodded nonetheless. He threw her one last _Be careful!_ look before leaping off with an unconscious Bloodhound in his arms.

Ladybug smiled fondly at her retreating partner. Luckily the plan to put out the flames of rage with water worked, or else she wouldn't have had him back at her side. Dragonfist was one mighty akuma, and if Bloodhound was unable to defeat him single-handed, then she certainly was without Chat Noir.

She really meant what she told him back then. Because without him, it just wouldn't do.

Dragonfist's roar snapped her out of her reverie. She pulled out her yo-yo with a determined frown. _You'll regret ever messing with my partners, Dragonfist._

* * *

Ryan's eyes were glued to his computer, or more accurately, the passed-out dog heroine surrounded by her worrying partners. He bit his nails and his face held nothing but pure horror and sorrow.

Ever since he saw Bloodhound for the first time, he couldn't stop thinking about her. Her stunning amber eyes filled with concern for him when he felt down then, the soft smile people saw rarely on her face directed at him, her silky dark-brown hair he so badly wanted to run his fingers through… _oh!_ His heart skipped a beat at the mere thought of her. Her and her kindness and caringness and… _oh…_

He was in love. He was over the moon, loop-de-loop, head over heels in love with the brown-cladded, floppy-eared superheroine. He wouldn't even deny it. One moment their eyes met, next he was a goner. He knew he would never recover from this sensation, but couldn't find it in himself to care.

Bruce, however, was rather discouraging in that matter. He tried to make him see common sense, that a relationship with a _superhero_ is practically impossible, with secret identities and hero duties and stuff. That Bloodhound would most likely keep her distance from civilians, in order to protect those she cares for - " _Should she even care about_ anything _. Wouldn't surprise me if she doesn't, as callous as that dog is."_ Bruce had said once, which he almost got clocked for by the honey-blond - and not jeopardize her identity. That she would always stay out of his reach, never to touch and never to keep.

But… a guy could still dream, right?

When the Ladyblog showed the titular heroine alone with Dragonfist, Ryan couldn't bear to watch the live stream anymore and shut off his computer. Leaving his room, he entered the balcony to clear his mind. Anger coursed through his veins as he thought about the akuma and how badly he wanted to rip him a new one for hurting his beloved–

"Hey, dude!"

Ryan flinched as a sudden voice ripped him out of his thoughts. He turned his head to see a person in black hurriedly coming his way.

Wait a second… _Chat Noir_?! What was he doing _here_?! And what was that in… his… arms…

Ryan felt the color drain from his face. "B-B-Bloodhound…?" he gasped.

Chat frowned, a rare seriosity on his face shown. "Not time for explanations. Hound needs a place to hide. Dragonfist must not find her."

Without a word, Ryan let the cat hero inside his room. It was painted in a light grey color with posters of Jagged Stone plastered on the walls. A wooden bed and corner table were placed in between the balcony door, a wardrobe and drawer in between the room door. There was a shelf above his bed, filled with books ranging from various novels to textbooks about sports and biology. On his desk, apart from the computer, stood a bunch of trophies and awards for sports like dodgeball, basketball, and soccer, most of them being for the former. On top of that, an acoustic guitar leaned against the wall, where lots of photos of either Ryan and his best bud Bruce, his squads or him in front of beautiful landscapes and sights from different countries.

After Chat placed Bloodhound carefully onto the bed and told Ryan to take care of her - as well as prevent her from leaving _at any cost_ \- he took off again to aid his partner in the fight. Only then it dawned on the honey-blond what he just got himself into.

Bloodhound was left in _his_ care. Bloodhound, one of Paris' resident superheroes, a.k.a. the girl of his dreams, was in _his_ room, lying on _his_ bed and waiting to be taken care of by _him_.

The situation then really dawned onto Ryan.

Bloodhound was left in his care! The most amazing girl in the world, was _left in his care_!

 _What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?!_

Ryan froze for a second, then calmly walked over to the bed and sat down on the chair next to it, then just sat there and watched as the dog heroine slept calmly.

 _She's so cute… and so beautiful…_

She then began to stir, causing the blonde to widen his eyes a bit in panic.

 _Oh shoot, what do I do?!_

Before he could think of anything else, Bloodhound slowly opened her amber eyes, groaning quietly. She then took in her surroundings.

 _Okay, I'm in a room… I don't remember coming here. Wait… is that…_

Bloodhound's eyes widened and her face burst into a blush.

 _Ryan?!_

Both of them made the same reaction - they jumped back a little after making eye contact and blushed heavily. A painful jolt then went through Bloodhound's head, making her wince and yelp a bit.

"Bloodhound, are you alright?" Ryan's instincts quickly kicked in as he went to check on the dog heroine.

She blushed some more. "I-I'm fine… th-thank you…"

Ryan raised one of his eyebrows a bit. _Did she just… stutter?_

Bloodhound raised a hand up to her head and winced again. "Scheiße, tut das weh…"

Now Ryan raised the eyebrow some more. _And was that_ _… German?_

She bit her lip at her slip-up. "Sorry… I… How did I end up here anyway?"

"Um… Chat Noir brought you here. He told me you needed a place to hide, and that Dragonfist mustn't find you." Ryan answered the masked girl's question, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Bloodhound's eyes widened. _VERDAMMT! Dragonfist! Blacky and Lass need_ – _GAAAH!_

As she tried to stand up, the pain came back, forcing Ryan to help her lay back down.

"Bloodhound, no! You're still hurt after the fight with Dragonfist. You need to stay here. The last thing Paris needs is for Dragonfist to finish you off! No one would survive that! I n- I mean _we_ need you."

Ryan caught himself on saying that _he_ needed her. Unfortunately for him, the dog heroine's sensitive ears caught what the boy said…

 _D-D-Did he just say he needed… **me**?_

The dog heroine then got snapped back into reality. _No no no, focus, girl… Lass and Blacky need you._ She grimaced slightly. _It hurts… but I'd rather help Paris and tolerate the pain than let it burn down._

Ignoring the stinging pain this time, she slowly stood up. "I gotta go back. My partners need me. Dragonfist is too strong."

"B-but… you're still hurt." Ryan tried to reason, but Bloodhound only smirked.

"Maybe… but he has one major weakness." Her eyes became distant. "Before he knocked me out, I noticed his skin was made of glass. If we create a loud enough soundwave, his skin will burst and he won't be able to defend himself anymore." Her hand tightened into a fist. "But my partners don't know that. Which is why _I_ have to go and tell them before worse things happen."

He wanted to protest. He really wanted to.

He couldn't stand the sight of Bloodhound being hurt.

He wanted to take care of her. He wanted her to stay until she was completely better…

… _but she is a superhero. Injuries like this happen… looks like I can't stop her._

"Okay… go. Just… promise me you'll be okay… please?" Ryan begged the girl in the mask.

Bloodhound's eyes softened at that. She placed a hand on Ryan's shoulder. "Don't worry about me, Ryan. What I want is for you to be okay. It's my job to make sure Paris is safe, after all!"

Ryan nodded. "Before you go, though… will you… I mean…" he gulped nervously. "… could you come back tonight? I-I want to make sure that you're feeling all better after the fight."

 _What are you doing?! As if Bloodhound has time for making home visits!_

Bloodhound only smiled. "Will do. Dog's honor." she said with a wink.

 _I take that back, I take that back!_

And with that, she jumped out of the honey-blond's room. Ryan continued to stare at the place the dog heroine was standing several seconds before. Just then, his lips stretched into a wide grin and he started to squeal quietly, like a fanboy.

 _Holy Cannoli! Bloodhound is coming to visit me!_ He threw himself onto his bed and let a blissful sigh escape his lips. _This is the best day of my life!_

* * *

 _WE ARE NOT OKAY! WE ARE NOT OKAY!_

Dragonfist was too much. Ladybug and Chat Noir were holding off against the akuma, but it was starting to become a lot to endure.

"Perhaps now would be a good time for a miracle to happen!" Chat called out to his partner, to which Ladybug nodded and threw her yo-yo into the air.

"Lucky Charm!"

Two objects were formed by the tool before falling into her hands.

"... Earmuffs?!"

"At least our ears will be warm…" Chat shrugged, before jumping back as Dragonfist charged at the heroes. "Any ideas, LB?!"

Before Ladybug even had the time to think of a plan, a loud thump was heard from a nearby roof. The zodiac duo paled as they saw the person.

"BLOODHOUND?!"

At the name, the akuma turned around to see said heroine panting heavily. "Did you really think I would leave you fighting Dragonfist on your own?" She pulled out her bat. "Cover your ears, folks, 'cause it's going to get _loud_ …"

Ladybug and Chat Noir covered their ears with the earmuffs.

Bloodhound took a deep breath and held her tool high into the air.

"Super Bark!"

Feeling the familiar sensation in her chest, Bloodhound secured herself in the ground and got into a pouncing position on all fours. As she did at the time with Dodge Ball, she felt the same stinging pain go into her lungs, and then felt energy building up inside.

" _Stop her! She must not release her superpower!_ " Hawk Moth called out to Dragonfist. As she growled, the akuma charged at her to prevent the sound wave from escaping…

…!

Ladybug and Chat Noir had mixed reactions. The red heroine covered her eyes while the cat hero shuddered and cringed.

Bloodhound wheezed and sank on her knees, holding her throbbing groin. An enormous amount of pain shot through her body from the contact. Never in her life had anything been more painful.

None of the falls she ever had.

None of the emotional pain she felt.

None of the pain from any fights.

None of it could compare to this.

It was too much to endure. It was so painful…

All Bloodhound felt was pain.

Pain… _pain_ … _PAIN_ …

" _ **AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!**_ "

What came next was quite possibly one of the loudest sounds ever to happen in the city of Paris.

Bloodhound let out, upon contact, the loudest shriek ever.

It was heard all across Paris, maybe all across Europe.

Ladybug and Chat Noir did their best to cover the sound. It helped that they were both wearing earmuffs, but it didn't help that Chat Noir had sensitive ears. It was endurable, but the sound of the shriek was painful, for both heroes.

Dragonfist had it the worst. Unable to resist, he was pushed back heavily by the force of the sound wave.

Then… the glass on the akuma started cracking.

" **Īe… ĪE! ĪEEEE! (No... NO! NOOOO!)** "

And with that, the glass body shattered and Dragonfist collapsed onto the ground, the akumatized object falling from his neck in the process. Ladybug took off the earmuffs and crushed the amulet. The akuma fluttered out.

"No more evil-doing for you, little akuma." She said as she opened her yo-yo and spun it. "Time to de-evilize!" She threw her tool at the butterfly and caught it. "Gotcha!"

"Bye bye, little butterfly." The red heroine called out to the insect flapping away before taking the earmuffs, and throwing them into the air.

"Miraculous Ladybug!"

All damages done by Dragonfist were repaired with the snap of a finger. The akuma dissolved and a young, Asian man was left in its place. "K-koko wa doko? (W-where am I?)"

"Pound it!" The trio fist bumped…

… but Bloodhound couldn't even speak. All she let out was a wheeze.

"Whoa, you okay, Hound?" Ladybug asked her partner with concern.

Bloodhound pointed to her throat, letting out another wheeze. It was obvious now - that shriek made her lose the ability to speak!

"She must have lost her voice from all the screaming. It must have damaged her vocal cords." Chat figured. To that, Bloodhound sent him a look that clearly said _Well, thank you, Captain Obvious!_ The gesture made Ladybug roll her eyes. "Shouldn't the Miraculous Ladybug have fixed it, though?"

Bloodhound shrugged, but the fact that she still couldn't speak was the obvious answer - it hadn't.

Not being able to speak lead to another personal problem - Ryan. She was going to visit him tonight… completely mute.

 _God, this sucks! The perfect moment, ruined! Screw you, Dragonfist! No, better yet, screw you, Hawk Moth!_

Meanwhile, Takeru slowly stood up. He couldn't remember in the slightest what had happened and how he got here. He saw three people standing not too far from him, wearing spandex and domino masks. His eyes widened at the person in brown.

"Chairo no inu?"

"Uh, I beg your pardon, sir, but we don't speak that language…" Chat said in a small voice. Takeru nodded in comprehension.

Then, amber eyes met hazel. A long, tension-filled stare between the two eventually broke when Takeru gave a small smile and bowed. Bloodhound smiled and bowed back.

"Gomen'nasai. (I'm sorry.)" the dog heroine wheezed out with difficulty, then broke into a violent, painful coughing fit.

 _Note to self, no talking for now…_

Takeru frowned in concern, but nonetheless nodded at her apology.

"Hound," Ladybug placed a hand on Bloodhound's shoulder. "Are you gonna be okay?"

She nodded, then mouthed, "I'll be fine." She then nodded to the Japanese. "Help him."

At the sound of her earrings beeping, Ladybug turned to the cat hero. "Chat, would you mind bringing this young man home?"

Chat smirked. "No _purr_ -oblem, M'Lady. I got you two covered."

* * *

"How could that be?" Hawk Moth breathed, completely numb. "How could have I failed _again_? It wasn't supposed to be like that. I was supposed to finally emerge victorious…" He glared and clenched his fist. "That bloody mutt is more powerful that I thought. I can't let her get off scot-free anymore. In order to get what I desire, her Miraculous needs to be seized as well. You better look out, Bloodhound, because **you** are targeted from now on too." The window then closed.

* * *

Later that night, Ryan paced around his room in nervousness.

The boy was still wondering - will Bloodhound show up to his house after all? After all the chaos occurring today, he wouldn't be surprised if she was too exhausted to visit him.

But just as he was about to call it a day, he heard a light knock on his balcony door.

Gasping in excitement, Ryan immediately sprung out of his bed and sprinted towards the balcony. No doubt about it, it was none other than Bloodhound, standing in a bit of a shy position. She had her hands behind her back and was twirling her foot a bit, looking towards the door with curved-back ears and a timid smile.

 _Holy cannoli, she is so freaking cute right now!_

He opened the door, and both of them froze for a few seconds, silver eyes lost in amber.

And maybe he was hallucinating, maybe it was a bit too dark and his eyes were deceiving him, but Ryan could swear that the heroine had a light blush on her face.

"H-Hi," Ryan said, waving shyly.

Bloodhound bit her lip lightly and waved back. Her lack of response intrigued the honey-blond. She usually responded with something sassy or witty, but now…

… she was shy. Bloodhound, one of the fiercest heroes Ryan has ever seen, was _shy_. With _him_ , no less.

"S-so… h-how're you doing?" he attempted to start a conversation. "Feeling b-better?"

Bloodhound grimaced a bit. She then made a throat-slitting motion to indicate her predicament.

"Lost my voice," she mouthed to the honey-blond.

"O-oh… do you… n-need anything? A glass of water? Or some cough drops?" Ryan asked the heroine, who held up a palm and shook her head.

"I'm good, thank you." she mouthed. She then saw a few sticky notes and a pen on Ryan's desk.

She walked over to the desk, took a note and went back to Ryan, and began writing him a message.

 _Lost my voice during the fight. I'll be fine in a few days._

Ryan's eyes softened. Bloodhound would always insist that she is fine, even when she isn't. Her stubbornness was one of her most admirable traits, next to her sense of justice. A volcano would freeze over before she would give up an akuma fight.

"Bloodhound," Ryan placed a hand on her shoulder. "Be honest with me… are you _really_ okay?"

The brunette stilled for a moment. Then, her eyes filled with nothing but grief, she began writing on the note.

 _I'm not okay. The fight was insanely painful. Do you know much it hurts to get kneed in the damn groin?! Apart from that, I'm also upset that that stupid Hawk Moth had to make one of the strongest akumas ever, and now because of that dickhead, I can't speak properly with you! Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be able to talk to you, but writing instead of speaking gets annoying after a while, y'know?_

After a bit of hesitation, she continued.

 _But the worst thing is… it was_ _me_ _who caused the akuma. Dragonfist was a martial artist who participated in an MMA tournament today and I distracted him. He lost the tournament and got akumatized. I apologized to him, and yet… because of_ _me_ …

Bloodhound clenched her eyes shut, desperately trying to keep the tears from falling.

She was Bloodhound. The tough, assertive and fearless watchdog guarding the city along with its heroes. She wouldn't cry. She can't…

… but alas, everyone cried at least once in their lifetime. The tears finally started to cascade down her face, a thick lump simultaneously forming in her already sore throat.

Ryan's heart immediately broke upon seeing his beloved hound start crying, in front of him no less. So, he did what any boy in love would do when they see their crush cry - wrap them into a warm hug.

Surprised by the action, but accepting it not two seconds later, Bloodhound started sobbing into Ryan's shirt. He started stroking her back, and gently rocking her back and forth, being as comforting as he could be.

Inside, he would have been screaming with joy right now, being able to be _this_ close to the love of his life, but this was no time for hopeless crushing. Bloodhound was very upset. And she needed someone to comfort her.

"It's okay, it's okay… shh…" Ryan whispered into the dog ears of the heroine, whilst she sobbed, letting out her emotions all at once… bottled up for quite a long time.

 _This feels so nice… Not just the fact that it's_ _ **Ryan**_ _hugging me right now… but the fact that I have such amazing friends… after all this time…_

They would have stayed like that the whole night long. Content in each other's arms and relishing in the closeness of their loved ones. Unfortunately, all good moments must come to an end. Reluctantly, the two teens both let each other go… and once again got lost in each other's eyes, feeling their faces flush up.

They both had the same thought. _Is he/she blushing?_

 _Beep beep beep!_

And they both jumped.

Bloodhound reached for her Miraculous. _Time's out! I gotta go! But…_ she inwardly whined. _Why?! WHY, TIME?!_

She stood up, not before writing down a message on the notepad. _I gotta go. I have a short time before I detransform._ She walked over to the balcony, but was stopped when Ryan placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Uhh… c-c-can you… I mean… would you like to c-come here again? I-I mean, you don't _have_ to, I just… w-well…"

Bloodhound raised an eyebrow before a smirk grew on her face. She wrote another message and stuck it onto his forehead. She then gave him a two-finger salute with a wink before jumping off the balcony, disappearing into the darkness.

He took off the note on his head after a few seconds, then broke out into a large grin and leaped into his bed. He squealed into his pillow. He re-read the note his love left him.

 _Of course. Be sure to keep your balcony door open ;)_

* * *

Alexa groaned quietly as she walked to school the next day. Her voice was still partly gone and it didn't help that her throat ached and itched like crazy.

She still had no idea how she managed to create a convincing lie so her parents wouldn't know that _she_ was the one to scream louder than a hundred lawnmowers, but somehow, she had done it.

She told her parents that the akuma got her, and that he kind of got a little angry. So, Alexa admitted, that she kind of got a little angry herself. In her aggressive state, she let out a scream that was so loud that it made her lose her voice.

It was convincing enough for both her family _and_ her classmates. _And_ she was still able to keep her secret safe.

While Alya gushed to her besties about the latest akuma, Alexa tried not to cringe every single time the brunette mentioned Dragonfist's brute strength. And the Scream…

 _Note to self: Never use the Super Bark to scream. Ever. Again._

Her mind then drifted to the highlight of the aftermath - her short little time with Ryan.

She couldn't stop the grin that grew on her face as she thought about the honey-blond. The way he held her in his strong arms and murmured consolations into her ear to calm her down. The way he smelled of apple and cinnamon and morning dew… everything about him was just so… _perfect_. And how they got lost in each other's eyes… how they were most likely about to ki-

"ALEXA!"

The brunette jumped when she heard Alya shout her name. She turned to the two girls, Alya looking at her expectantly while Marinette looked like she would rather be somewhere else.

At Alexa's lack of response, the blogger groaned. "Alex, I just asked what you think about the akuma. Wasn't Dragonfist the fiercest one yet?"

At that, Alexa lowered her eyelids, as to say _I don't want to talk about it_ , and luckily, the girls seemed to accept that.

Adrien then walked into the class and sat down next to Nino, fist bumping the aspiring DJ after he took a seat.

"Hey guys. Did you hear the news about the akuma?" the blond started. "Ryan told me that the victim, Takeru Ryūan, applied to be his sensei's assisting teacher. Apparently, he wanted to settle down in Paris and regain his family's honor."

Alexa raised an eyebrow at that. So she'll be seeing this Takeru more often? Interesting.

Before the conversation could be continued, Miss Bustier stepped into the class and the lesson began. Seems like it'll have to wait until break.

Alexa took her tablet and started writing down notes.

 _Gonna need to step up my game against Hawk Moth._ Alexa thought. _Who knows how powerful the next akuma will be? I can't let Hawk Moth get his hands on our Miraculouses._ She clenched the stylus as she silently scowled.

 _Sooner or later, Buttermoth… we will find you. And one way or another… we will defeat you._

* * *

 **A/N: Woooo, finally done! Four f***ing months… I thought I would never finish this godforsaken chapter ':)**

 **First off, I want to thank the two most incredible persons aiding me in writing this chapter: Starshine89, for beta-reading, and a friend of mine from school, for helping me with the Japanese language. Really guys, without you two, I would have never managed to finish this chapter. I really owe you :3**

 **Also, my friend from school is a really great artist and agreed to design this story's cover. I can't wait to see how it turns out! Also, if you'd like to see some of her amazing art, check out her DeviantArt page under the username 'okami-chan774'. I just know she'll make it far with that talent of hers :D**

 **Alright then, next stop: Despair Bear! This one ought to be easier to do since the episode is already there. I just have to alter a few things here and there and... voilá!  
**

 **As always, reviews are greatly appreciated and remember:**

 **Stay cool and so long!**

 ***Jiyu Kumite means free sparring. This type of sparring is reserved for more advanced practitioners, which neither Alexa nor Ryan are. The girl merely said this to flirt a bit with the latter ;)**


	11. Despair Bear (AU)

**A/N: Hey folks! Who's up for a new chapter of BTDMH? A week into summer vacation, and I'm way faster done with it than I expected! But only thanks to a very special person who was a really big help on this one *wink wink* ;)  
**

 **Not much to say here, but Despair Bear is one of my favorite episodes of Season 2. Not just because Mari gets to be closer to Adrien than ever, but Chloé begins to change her attitude too, albeit slowly. I personally think Adrien shouldn't have forgiven her that easily in the end, but I guess that's just me (or not?) ':)**

 **to _Starshine89_ (PM): Thanks a lot, lad! I'm glad the long wait was worth it! It was my first time writing a fictitious episode, and I feel really proud ^_^**

 **The scenes with Alexa and Ryan were the best parts, in my opinion. The fluff, the feelings, the atmosphere... gah, I'm melting again XD**

 **And should I thank you as well, for helping me with the chapter. And also with this one too! I really don't know what I would do without you ;)**

 **to _GaoGod (Guest)_ : I guess I did a good job after all, huh? ':) Anyway, I'm glad you liked the chapter. When I read your character description, I was instantly reminded of a friend of mine who learns Japanese. And I figured, why not make Takeru more than just a ******one-time character? I really enjoyed writing about him, and I definitely plan on making him appear more often ;)  
****

 ** **Don't worry, Ryan won't go super... but who knows? Perhaps _occasionally_ in a possible sequel?**** ** **;)****

 ** **No need to apologize, my friend. I admit, it was a bit tricky with the language, but it was also kinda fun. Especially since my friend got to be such a big help (and got a bit of training out of it as well) ;)****

 ** **Yes, no and no. Rena Rouge, Carapace and Queen Bee will also appear, it won't just be the trio, and I'm NOT replacing the occasional team members :)****

 ** **And one last thing: I'm afraid your second akuma idea will have to be scratched. Since I (more or less) follow the canonical route - and because of Timetagger - your akuma cannot be. I'm very sorry, but this can't be avoided. BUT, I need one more akuma for this story, so if you have an idea that doesn't meddle with canon (for now), I'll glady accept your idea ;)****

 ** **to _Angelwings2002_ : Thank you very much :3  
****

 ** **to _The Sensational SpiderDom321_ : All is fine, dude. It warms my heart to know you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Takeru will ********_****definitely****_ have a comeback, perhaps not as Dragonfist, but as himself ;)****

 **Ain't they just the sweetest things? ^_^**

 **Was the fight really that realistic? I felt like it was missing some real action ':) But if you liked it, good for you :D**

 **That's good to know. We FFN friends have to stick together, after all ;)**

 **Thank you very much. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter too. It's maybe not as good as the prior, but I did my best ^_^**

 **to _fantasy.92_ : Thx ;3**

* * *

 _"So you think you can have anything and everything, huh?"_

 _Acid-green burned into amber. All faces were directed at her, her own paled in horror._

 _"You think you're the queen of the world? You think you're invincible?" The green-eyed brunette scoffed. "Tell you what? You're nothing more than a filthy little thief! A scoundrel! And the biggest excuse for a human there is!" She gave her an evil grin. "You're_ _ **nothing**_ _! And you will always be nothing…_ Ali _!"_

 _Fingers pointed at her, laughter sounded, names were called out. Amber eyes frantically tried to find the familiar hazel ones. But upon meeting them, they held nothing but disgust and disdain. Desperation filled her, her eyes wide and beseeching, but the blonde merely crossed her arms and looked away._

 _Her heart shattered. Tears filled her eyes, her breaths turned shallow. She couldn't bear it anymore._

 _She had to get away from here._

 _Pulling the hoodie over her head, she fled the room, the shouts and laughter echoing after her. The tears cascaded down her face as she tumbled to the floor._

 _Alone. She was all_ _ **alone**_ _. And nobody cared._

 _She screamed in utter agony._

Alexa gasped sharply as she started from her sleep. Her eyes darted in every direction as she tried to soothe her frantic heartbeat. Once she calmed herself down, the brunette sighed in sorrow.

Another nightmare.

Another cruel memory to remind her of what used to be.

And it just _had_ to be one of the worst.

Swiping her hand over her moist forehead, Alexa forced back the tears threatening to escape her eyes and sank back into her pillow, letting its softness calm her nerves a bit.

 _It's over, girl. None of that will happen ever again. So just forget about it. The past is in the past._ With that thought in mind, she slowly succumbed to a (hopefully) peaceful sleep again.

* * *

Alexa probed her head on her hand as Miss Bustier delivered her lecture. She suppressed a yawn of boredom.

History was - in her opinion - the most horrible subject ever, next to Social Studies. So what if Hitler took over in 1933 and turned Germany into a dictatorship? People back then shouldn't have been so naive and let that racist and anti-semitic maniac and his party enter the Reichstag. Just because people were desperate and therefore accepted far-fetched answers… that's no excuse! Their naivety caused the Second World War and the Holocaust, for crying out loud!

"Weren't those Nazis _your_ people, Ivanov?" Chloé commented haughtily, earning scowls from the students and a warning from the teacher to guard her tongue. The others then looked at Alexa with sympathy, to which the brunette gave a small smile in appreciation.

Another thing she hated about the current lesson. Her home country was practically responsible for both World War I & II and for that blonde snob to rub salt into her open wounds just made it more unbearable.

Fortunately, the bell finally rang and signaled the end of this dreadful lesson.

"Alright, everyone, that's it for today." Miss Bustier announced. "Please read pages 138 and 139 and summarize the content until tomorrow." Groans filled the classroom. "Mr. Dupain will arrive shortly for today's pastry lesson." At this cheers were heard instead. Miss Bustier merely rolled her eyes in fond exasperation.

Alexa raised an eyebrow in intrigue and tapped Marinette's shoulder. "Your father gives pastry lessons?" she wondered.

"Yes, he does." The blackette nodded. "Papa loves to demonstrate his baking skills in front of the class."

"His baking is the bomb!" Alya grinned. "It could almost rival my mom's cooking. Oh, who am I kidding! It _so_ does!"

The three girls shared a round of laughter. Up until this day, Alexa still couldn't believe how lucky she was to have found such wonderful friends like Marinette and Alya.

Said something weird? They laugh with you about it. Feeling down? They cheer you up in any way they can. Being insulted? They defend you without hesitation.

These two girls were _two in a million_ , and Alexa wouldn't ever take them or their deeds for granted. Because they deserved nothing but the best.

(Even if one was a complete mess around the boy she liked and the other was nosy as _heck_!)

Just then, a tall and broad-shouldered man entered the classroom. He had short brown hair, green eyes, sideburns, and a mustache. His clothes consisted of a light blue shirt with two buttons at the front of the neckline and light brown pants. In his arms, he held several baking utensils and ingredients.

"Speaking of the devil…" Marinette chuckled as the whole class gathered around her father, excited to see him bake. Excluding a certain blond and her ginger companion of course, but that was honestly to be expected.

The three besties giddily made their way to the front desk, eager to see which pastry would be baked today.

* * *

Needless to say, something bad just _had_ to happen at some point.

As Mr. Dupain tasked his daughter to put the prepared macaron batter into the cafeteria fridge to chill, Alexa spotted Chloé whispering into her phone, and just mere seconds later the fire alarm went off. And now all the students of Collège Françoise Dupont were assembled to find the culprit of this prank.

Alexa knew it was wrong to suspect someone without real evidence. But the second Chloé accused Marinette, she nearly lost it.

How dare that snot-nosed punk open her oversized yap and play the innocent?! That damned, good-for-nothing, conceited wannabe-diva…

 _Control your temper, Alexa!_ her inner voice suddenly called out. _Remember: Hawk Moth can feel your anger! Take steady breaths and count to ten! Steady breaths and count to ten. Steady breaths and count to ten…_

"Steady breaths and count to ten." the brunette whispered the mantra to herself.

"I'm with you, by the way," Alexa heard a voice next to her whisper. She looked and saw someone that made her heart start beating faster. "Chloé can really be such a bratty jerk. I'm glad you agree with me on that." Ryan said to her, shining her a warm smile.

Alexa grinned warmly at the honey-blond. "I wish I could call her out though," she whispered in a frustrated manner.

Ryan smirked. "What's stopping you?"

"The lack of evidence." Alexa sweat-dropped, making Ryan deadpan and simply nod.

"Fine." Mr. Damocles said, redirecting their attention to him again. "Since no one is owning up, the whole school will be punished."

 _WHAT THE WHAT?!_ Alexa started trembling with barely suppressed anger. _Alright, this is it. If Chloé doesn't own up in the next five seconds, I'm going to–_

"WHAT?!" Chloé exclaimed appalled. "I'm not so sure my father will react kindly to me being punished without any proof!"

 _SHE CAN NOT BE SERIOUS! THAT… THAT… THAT ASSWIPE!_ Needless to say, Alexa was getting angrier.

Mr. Damocles flinched at that. "Oh, no! Please, don't disrupt the busy mayor." He coughed shortly to clear his voice. "The whole school is punished except for Miss Bourgeois!"

"That's more like it." Said girl smirked.

" **NO!** " Everyone's heads snapped at the source of the voice.

"This is unacceptable!" Alexa yelled. "I can not believe you, Mr. Damocles! You are letting yourself get manipulated by that spoiled, bratty jerk just because her father is the mayor?! For all I know, she could spit on the head of the President of France and still get away with it! And now, she does this, just because Marinette and her father are getting the attention they deserve!"

"And _you_!" She pointed at Chloé. "You can say whatever you want to me, I don't give a damn, but you've stepped way over the line this time! I can not believe that you, you low-life, good-for-nothing, sadistic, selfish, ironic, absolutely zero percent tolerable spoiled _bitch_ would go as far as to waste the time of firefighters who might be missing out on _**saving a fucking life**_! All because you couldn't stand not being paid attention to! You should truly be ashamed of yourself, for one, letting your jealousy and hatred get the better of you, two, taking away precious time from the fire department, and three, because you can not get a hold of yourself when it comes to the power of the fucking mayor! _Fuck you, Chloé! Fuck you, fuck you, FUCK! YOU!_ "

A dead silence followed as Alexa breathed heavily through her teeth. The face on all students read astonishment, that such a girl like Alexa could be so colorful-languaged and not afraid to speak her mind, especially to someone like Chloé Bourgeois.

Alexa blinked once, then grinned. _Wow! That felt GOOD! I feel so much better now!_ She genuinely felt proud of herself for delivering one of the greatest burns ever to the one who truly deserves it.

Now if only she could have delivered that to someone else from the past…

Mr. Damocles didn't say anything. He _couldn't_ say anything after Alexa delivered that blow. Technically, while he wasn't happy to hear students swearing, he had to admit, Miss Ivanov did have a point.

Miss Bourgeois was uncontrollable when it came to what her father could do. She was spoiled, it was a fact, no discipline or punishment must ever been used against her. It's no wonder she thinks she's the queen of Paris!

Chloé started trembling and sent a glare that could kill towards the brunette. "What did you just call me, Ivanov?"

Alexa glared back. "Are you deaf, you incorrigible, poor-fashioned, cheese-headed _imbecile_?"

"That is enough!" The girls snapped their heads towards the principal.

"I have decided. I will not allow myself to be manipulated again. It is either everyone if no one reveals who pulled this prank, or no one, should the prankster come forward. What will it be?"

Silence. Alexa glared at Chloé again. _Oh, NOW you keep your mouth shut?!_

"Then it is settled."

Alexa facepalmed. She should have figured this. Chloé was too prideful, she would rather have the school (including her) punished than own up to her wrongdoings.

The brunette then turned to Marinette and Alya. "Do you see what just went down?"

" _I know._ " the blackette gushed, making Alexa raise an eyebrow in confusion. " _Adrien just talked in my ear._ "

The brunette resisted the urge to facepalm again. _I swear to god, she's worse than Blacky…_ She walked over to Marinette and flicked the back of her head, making her wince.

"Focus Loreley, and get a broom or something." the brunette grumbled as she wandered off to get one herself.

* * *

 _Steady breaths and count to ten. Steady breaths and count to ten…_

As the students had scattered again to fulfill their punishments, the blonde demon wouldn't shut up and keep sending glares and insults Alexa's way. She just wouldn't stop.

Hell, she didn't even do her damn job!

Alexa was _this_ close to going over there and pulling her ponytail so hard that it would be ripped off.

"Wow, that was _sick_! Can you believe what just happened?" Alexa heard Alya asking Marinette. She looked over to her two friends and saw them gushing about… _her_?

"I have to hand it to Alexa, she said what we were all thinking!" Alya stated.

"I know! I've always thought the same thing, but I never wanted to ever say it out loud." Marinette commented.

"Leave it to Alexa to show everyone that we're all capable of doing even the scariest things!" the Ladyblogger concluded.

All Chloé-induced rants were turned off as Alexa let a large grin grow on her face. Once again - no remarks, no nothing (save for Chloé), just support from the best friends in the world.

"I'M TALKING TO YOU, IVANOV!" a yell broke her trance. With a deadpan, she looked at Chloé, who was steaming red.

"Chloé."

"WHAT?!"

"Shut up and do your job otherwise I'll boot your ass over to Iceland."

Quiet "oooh"s were heard.

Chloé was speechless. She then yelled in frustration and went back to minding her own business. Alexa only chuckled and continued sweeping the floor.

"She's right, you know?" Chloé suddenly heard Adrien comment and turned around to see his face full of annoyance and disappointment. "Just because your father is the mayor doesn't mean you get to get away with everything. This isn't fair, compared to the others."

"You actually _agree_ with that _Nazi_?!" Chloé yelled, causing Adrien to actually _glare_ at her.

"You call her that again and I'll make you wish you were never born." she turned around to see Ryan scowling at her.

"Ryan here is right, you know," Adrien said. "Chloé, you know well that I absolutely despise whenever you purposely say nasty comments, remarks, make offensive statements, and say things that you just can't take back. Alexa is a genuinely good person, and she does not deserve to be insulted by you, Chloé."

"One more thing, Bourgeois." she turned to Ryan. "Adrien mentioned to me that you and him have been friends since childhood, no? Then don't you think you should ask for _his_ opinion on all of this instead of being the selfish, arrogant brat you are and say what's on your mind, and not give a crap whether you hurt people or not?! It's no wonder Adrien wants to stay away from you!"

"I'd rather use the phrase, _keep my distance_."

"Got it."

"Anyways, Chloé…" Chloé's face was starting to become more and more upset. Adrien felt a little bad, but he had to get this out.

"If you can't learn to be nice to people and apologize for hurting them, then I think it would be better if you stay away from me. If you continue being the rudest person in the world… then we can't be friends. I'm sorry, Chloé."

Adrien and Ryan then walked away, leaving a crestfallen Chloé, who still did not understand what she did wrong.

* * *

 **Later that day…**

At Marinette's place, the girls had assembled to see the former's newest creations. The aspiring designer had made beautiful hats, each different than the other. The girls liked them so much, they asked her if they could take some pictures, just for fun. Marinette immediately relented once the infamous puppy dog eyes came into action.

Alexa meanwhile smiled softly as she watched them joke and laugh and try on different hats. She still had a _long_ way to go to feel like she really belonged here. She still wasn't completely used to being in a peer group, but with just a bit of time, those insecurities might diminish for good.

Hopefully.

"Hey Alexa!" one of the girls' voices ripped her out of her thoughts. The female had blonde pixie cut hair and periwinkle eyes and wore a shirt with light pink sleeves, pink and white stripes on the front, and a string tied around her waist. She also had a pink mini skirt with two white edges at the bottom of the cloth.

"I just wanted to say," she spoke again. "I think I speak for everyone when I say this: You're definitely one of the most courageous and fairest, not to mention nicest girls to attend this school."

Alexa felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment as the others agreed with the blonde girl. "Thanks, um… Rose, was it?"

"Rose Lavillant, yes," she confirmed in a sweet manner.

Alexa nodded before scratching her head sheepishly. "Sorry, I'm not very good at remembering names."

Rose giggled. "That's quite okay. Y'know, Marinette and Alya have told us quite a lot about you. You're one awesome girl."

The girls around then began clamoring with one another and to Alexa, praising her and saying all sorts of kind and sweet statements, saying how brave, amazing she was for standing up to Chloé, wise to be the person to state the truth to both her and the principal, and overall being there for her, showering her with compliments, affection, and friendship.

The brunette was sure her whole face had turn red by this point. In a swift movement, she pulled her hood over her head and squeaked quietly in embarrassment.

All of a sudden, Alya's phone dinged, signaling a notification. Though, it was the most unusual thing ever - an invitation to a party hosted by _Chloé_.

"Chloé's inviting me to a party," Alya stated in bewilderment.

Oddly enough, it wasn't just Alya. All the other girls received invites too… well, all except for Alexa and Marinette.

"That's so nice of Chloé!" Rose cooed.

" _Chloé_ and _nice_ in the same sentence? Can't be her." Marinette crossed her arms stubbornly.

"Tch, pigs must be flying, I swear…" Alexa muttered.

"Maybe somebody hacked into her phone then?" a girl with multi-colored strands of hair held back by a pink bandanna and golden brown eyes asked.

Marinette got out her phone to check for an invite. "I haven't received a text."

Alexa copied the blackette's action. Nada. "Me neither. Then that means it _must_ be from Chloé." she deadpanned. This statement caused the girls to laugh.

But after a few more moments, Marinette and Alexa's phones dinged as well.

"Ewww, She invited me!" Marinette cried out in revulsion.

"Yikes, me too!" Alexa grimaced, before suddenly stopping short. "Wait a second… how did she even get my phone number?"

"Awesome!" Rose cheered, ignoring the brunette's question. "This will be so much fun!"

"Wait! You're actually going to go?" Marinette asked appalled.

"She probably wants to say sorry for this morning," the rainbow-haired female reasoned. "Maybe she's nice. Very, very, deep down."

" _Nice_?" Alexa echoed dryly. "Mylène, the only time you hear the words _Chloé_ and _nice_ in the same sentence is if the word _isn't_ is between them."

"I agree with Alexa," Marinette nodded. "Chloé's the exact opposite of nice. Whatever, you guys can go but don't count me in."

"Same with me," Alexa declined. "Apart from the fact that _Chloé_ invited me, I've never been much of a party person."

In that moment, Alya's phone dinged again, the brunette grinning at the received text. "It's Nino. He's going to the party with Adrien."

Marinette squeaked at the mention of her crush. "O-okay, yes, you guys are right. We should totally give Chloé one more chance." Alya merely shook her head in fond exasperation.

"REALLY?!" Alexa cried out chagrined, startling the other girls. "The second _Adrien_ is mentioned, you cave in?! And here I thought you just grew some balls, Mari!"

Said girl blushed indignantly. "You're one to talk!" she accused. "I remember a certain someone being overly excited about attending karate lessons with _Ryan_!"

"I used to practice karate, Mari," Alexa countered. "It was a good excuse to start again. And sharing lessons with Ryan is just an added bonus, so I don't feel completely left out." At the raised eyebrows of the others, she threw her arms up in surrender. "Fine, be that way! Go and act like the basket case you obviously are!" She crossed her arms and turned away with her chin up. "But don't expect me to tag along. Unlike you, I've got my pride."

Marinette opened her mouth to say something back, but she closed it when her mind came up blank and simply pouted.

Alexa sighed. "I mean, let's face it - you're completely hopeless when it comes to the boy, because he's so oblivious that he doesn't see what's up, but come on, you're going to go to a party held by your childhood bully, just because your crush is going? I mean, I guess I can see where you're coming from, but–"

Alexa stopped mid-sentence as her phone rang. Her face instantly reddened when she saw who was calling.

"H-hey, Ryan! What's good?" Alexa answered, then instantly lost her confident smirk.

 _Wow, way to greet him, girl! Very clever! What are you, American?!_

" _Hey there, Alex! Sorry to interrupt anything, but I was wondering… you heard about the party the resident devil's holding, right?_ "

Alexa laughed upon hearing that. It's so ironic, yet it's totally accurate.

"Yeah yeah, I've heard, what about it?"

" _Well, for some reason, Bruce wants to go there, because of, you know, the epicness that comes with a party held by a rich person,_ " This statement made the brunette cringe a bit. " _And since he doesn't want to go by himself, he asked me to tag along, but considering it would be a bit boring being the third wheel there… would you like to come along with us?_ "

Alexa went rigid. What should she do? Decline and let Ryan party alone? Well, he would be pretty disappointed, he seemed very eager for her to come along. But, if she accepts… what could she really do? Alexa was never a party person. She pretty much never attended any high school parties, any big parties were usually birthday parties for her or for Lukas when they were little.

So, to party or not to party? That was the question… and thinking about it made Ryan worry a bit.

" _Alex? Are you still there?_ "

Alexa sighed. "Yeah, I am, sorry… Alright, you got me, I'll tag along. Since you asked me so nicely…"

Ryan lit up on the other side of the phone. " _Awesome! See? I told you she'd come, Bruce! See you at the party, Alex!_ "

"Yeah, see ya!" Hanging up, Alexa finally let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. And it was only then she noticed the smug looks the girls were giving her, Marinette and Alya in particular.

"I don't want to hear one word, okay?!" Alexa exclaimed, blushing.

"Oh, don't worry, girl," Alya smirked. "We're silent."

* * *

The party was (unsurprisingly) in full swing once the guests arrived.

For some reason, despite the blonde's reputation, lots of people had made their way to the party and were even enjoying themselves. That was one of the first things Alexa noticed when she arrived alongside Marinette, Adrien, Alya, Nino, Ryan and Bruce.

The gang wasn't slow to arrive once everyone had discussed whether to go or not.

Chloé was talking to her butler about something, and then, Alexa saw something… strange. It seemed the butler was holding a yellow teddy bear. The girl's thoughts were interrupted when Ryan asked her something.

"You don't think this party is a bit bizarre?" he asked. Alexa only shrugged.

"Well, I've known Chloé the longest," Adrien added. "She's incredibly arrogant and rude, but believe me, she has a nice side too. She just doesn't really want to show it." he sighed at the end.

"Adrikins!" an excited, and rather shrill, voice sounded from behind said boy. The model's face turned exasperated for a second.

 _Ah crud, here we go again…_ he put on a fake model smile as Chloé quite literally leaped into his arms and pressed a kiss to his cheeks.

Alexa felt bile build up in her mouth. This is just so wrong, regardless of whether best friends or not.

And surprisingly, she went around and started kissing everyone else's cheeks. Even _Marinette and Chloé_ also shared cheek kisses! They both gagged upon doing so. After Bruce and Ryan… Alexa was next.

Chloé reluctantly went ahead, ready to give her a cheek kiss, but Alexa glared and put a finger to her forehead, stopping her.

"Kiss my cheeks, and I'll stitch your lips shut." she growled. The blonde backed away, with a bit of a worried look.

Once greetings were done and gone, the party officially began. Nino took his place as the DJ and started up the music, and everyone was enjoying themselves. Chloé may be a spoiled, narcissistic brat, but Alexa had to admit something - she knew how to throw a good party, no matter how forced it might seem.

While the girls and boys were chatting among themselves, the brunette headed off in a random direction to recollect her thoughts.

 _Alright, I'm at a huge party thrown by the biggest bitch I know besides Laura. This party is most likely forced to get Adrien's friendship back and I'm merely here because the boy of my dreams asked me to._ She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. _Just what have I gotten myself into?_

Alexa shook her head a bit at the entire situation. She then decided to go to the bar, get herself some refreshments. The only thing was, when she got there, it looked like rude Chloé had returned. She was about to go and tear her hair out, but she suddenly acted _nice_ to Mylène! She even patted her hair, for crying out loud!

 _Either Chloé's a really good actress, or she's trying way too hard to win back Adrien… will she ever stop?_

Alexa sighed. "What is happening…"

Alya and Marinette then walked over to Alexa.

"Hey, Alexa," Marinette greeted. "How are you doing?"

The brunette deadpanned. "Remind me why I'm here again?"

"Because Ryan asked you to come along," Alya snickered. "And you didn't want to feel guilty for leaving him on his own."

This made Alexa facepalm, sliding her hand down her face.

Sense of guilt. Her second biggest weakness.

She then heard a slow song start - this could only mean… _slow dancing_.

Alexa inwardly sighed to herself in exasperation. Dancing was never her thing. She had two left feet - any dance she ever attempted resulted in unnatural clumsiness.

She witnessed Kim asking for a dance, but Chloé, being Chloé, was naturally rude, seemingly refusing him and OH MY LORD WAS THAT AN AKUMA?!

Alexa's eyes weren't deceiving her - an akuma was _right on top of them_!

The good news was that Chloé made up her mind and went to dance with Kim, while the akuma fluttered away. The brunette let out a breath of relief she had no idea she was holding in.

Meanwhile, the two besties appeared to be none the wiser of the only just averted impending akumatization, instead, Alya was convincing Marinette to go and dance with Adrien, while she went and danced with Nino. Yet, despite the fact that it was Marinette who desperately wanted a slow dance with the model, it was Adrien himself asking to dance!

Alexa smiled to herself when she saw that. _Give it some time, and they'll be all over each other…_

The brunette then felt someone poke her shoulder. Ryan. A blushing Ryan. Her eyes weren't deceiving her, it was _a nervous Ryan MacAuley blushing in front of her, holy moly!_

"H-hey Alex," the honey-blond stuttered, almost causing the brunette to gawk because _Oh my god, Ryan was nervous!_ "I was wondering, since everybody seems to be doing the same… " He then held out his hand to her. "… Would you like to dance?"

"D-d-dance?!" Alexa squeaked, feeling her face heat up. "A-as in, _us two_?"

"Well… yeah," the boy answered nervously. "W-why? Is there something wrong?"

Alexa bit her lip lightly. "I… I don't know about that… I'm not a very good dancer." she whispered that last part.

Her eyes cast down, the brunette didn't notice the warm smile forming on Ryan's face. Nor did she expect him to suddenly take her hand in his and squeeze it comfortingly. But oh boy, nothing ever felt more amazing than this.

"A girl who can stand up to the meanest person in school," Ryan began. "surely can manage a little dance with me." He winked at the last part.

 _Be still, my heart!_ "B-but what if I accidentally step on your toes?"

Ryan simply shrugged. "I'll handle it. Just follow my lead, okay?"

All fear of dancing forgotten, Alexa absentmindedly nodded and allowed the honey-blonde to pull her to the dance floor. Ryan took Alexa's hand and put his free hand on her waist, whilst Alexa put her free hand onto his shoulder. The two began a graceful waltz, despite Alexa still trying to keep her attention on her feet so as to not step on Ryan's.

But overall, Alexa had to admit it - _this was amazing_.

She never thought she would be invited to this party. She never would have thought that she would actually end up enjoying said party held by the rudest person in the school. But most of all, she never thought that she would ever get to slow dance with Ryan.

Alexa smiled to herself when she also witnessed one of the most heart-warming slow dances by Marinette and Adrien themselves. It also helped that Alya and Nino weren't so bad themselves. Things just kept getting better.

 _You're doing good, girls. Especially you, Mari._ the brunette grinned.

But unfortunately, all good things had to come to an end.

Chloé had an outburst, again, because of Adrien and Marinette dancing, what a damn surprise, but…

… her butler had something strange in his hand, waving at Chloé. The same yellow teddy bear Alexa saw earlier.

"Oh, please Chloé, dear," the butler said in a squeaky voice. "You've been such a good little girl. Mr. Cuddly is so very proud…"

Alexa felt the edges of her mouth curling up. _Chloé has a teddy bear? And his name is Mr. Cuddly?_ A snicker escaped her lips before turning into a full-blown laugh. The same thing went on with everyone else. Obviously, Chloé was incredibly upset when she saw what was happening.

"I didn't know you still have a teddy bear, Chloé!" Alexa called out mirthfully. "What comes next? You sucking on your thumb when you sleep?"

The other guests burst into incredulous laughter at that… well, all but Adrien, the ever-'faithful' friend, and Marinette, even though a little snicker seemed to have escaped her mouth, but she quickly pulled herself together again so the blond boy wouldn't notice her little outburst… oh wait nevermind, he was laughing too, so why bother?

As Chloé quickly fled the dancing hall in shame and anger, Alexa felt someone tap her shoulder through her laughter.

"You're such a riot, Alex," Bruce snickered. "I've never seen anyone grill this bitch the way you do. You just seem to have a retort for everything she says."

"What can I say?" Alexa shrugged. "A person like her deserves it, no?"

"Damn straight! I never would have thought you can be this bold, Alex!" Bruce said, grinning. "You blessed the school the second you stepped in! Never change, 'kay?"

"Wouldn't even dream about it." Alexa winked.

Bruce then went over to whisper something to Ryan. "You need another reason as to why Alexa might be a better choice?"

Ryan rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Cut it out, bro. I already told you: I _felt_ it," he whispered back. "Bloodhound is the one for me. I just know it."

Bruce sighed and covered his face with his hands. "I caaaaaan't…"

"What are you two whispering about?" the devil butted in, an eyebrow raised in confusion.

"Err, nothing!" Ryan exclaimed nervously. "Just a talk between best buddies, that's all!"

"Well actually, we were t–ow!" Bruce winced as his best friend elbowed him in the ribs, effectively shutting him up and stopping him from whatever he was about to say.

Alexa, like always, felt her curiosity sense tingle. She was about to dig deeper, when suddenly Nino decided that the show must go on and started the music again, this time a more peppy one. In the end, Alexa ended up shrugging it off and went to enjoy what she could of the party.

But not long before the party continued, another commotion broke out. Turning their heads, the friends saw Chloé running away from Sabrina, who was… holding a brush in her hand?

And Sabrina's eyes seemed to be colored an eerie shade of green…

That's when Alexa saw it. A purple-colored teddy bear, a bear very much resembling… Mr Cuddly?! It was clinging to her leg and it seemed to be controlling her.

 _Don't tell me…_

Then one second Chloé hid behind a tall and broad boy with olive skin, grey eyes and black hair with golden dyed ends styled into a sharp quiff - what was his name again? Kim? - and the next the bear changed hosts and the boy pulled the screaming blonde into a dance.

Alexa facepalmed. _Why can't things just be normal for once?_

It seemed that attention was drawn on to the possessed boy, so the brunette took this opportunity to sneak away and transform. She ducked behind a corner and Yapp came out of her hoodie pocket.

"Looks like the blondie caused some trouble after all," the dog kwami sweat-dropped.

"You don't say," Alexa deadpanned. "The first party I ever attended _and_ enjoyed just had to be ruined by an akuma caused by its very host… I knew it was gonna happen. Alya owes me twenty euros…" Shaking her head, her expression turned serious. "Anyway, time to unleash the dog."

"Yapp, Bark on! Aaroooo!" With the magic words said, Alexa transformed into her superhero alter-ego.

With a leap, Bloodhound pelted through the door again and pounced at Kim, aiming for the teddy bear on his leg. The other guests gasped as they saw her and the boy tumble across the floor.

"Hold still, will ya!" Bloodhound exclaimed. As she was able to grab the boy's leg, she saw that the teddy bear was gone, and all that was left was a confused boy.

Her partners decided to show up in that exact moment. "Where's the akuma?" Ladybug asked.

"It's the teddy bear, Lass! The akumatized object is the akuma itself!"

"And what do we do about her?" Chat Noir pointed towards Chloé, who had somehow landed in a ball pit.

Bloodhound looked for a few seconds, then shook her head. "… nothing." Her sensitive ears suddenly picked up a movement close to the red heroine and her eyes widened. "Lass, look out!"

Ladybug picked up what Bloodhound was saying in an instant, and dodged a flying chair with a massive leap. It was a boy with dark skin, curly brown hair, and brown eyes covered by glasses who had thrown the chair and, surprise surprise, he was being controlled by none other than Despair Bear.

Chat Noir leaped at the boy, but the akuma decided to change hosts again and claimed Alya, who tried to keep Ladybug grounded, but the spotted heroine swiftly rolled over and Despair Bear was gone again.

"Guys, guys, this is pointless! He'll just keep jumping from host to host!" Bloodhound exclaimed. "We need another plan!"

"Bloodhound, watch out!" Chat shouted, and the dog heroine ducked to avoid Despair's next victim - Ryan.

 _Oh, verdammt! Now it's Ryan?!_

"Ryan, snap out of it!" she yelled, but he suddenly lunged at her and pinned her to the ground. For a mere civilian, Ryan was really strong.

That thought brought a slight blush to her face.

 _"Despair Bear, make the boy grab her Miraculous! The choker!"_

Ryan then started reaching for the jewelry, while Bloodhound vainly tried to squirm herself free.

Luckily, Bloodhound was saved by Ladybug who pushed the boy off of the dog heroine and pulled her aside.

"Phew, that was a close one," Bloodhound sighed in relief. "Thanks, Lass!"

Ladybug nodded before she was suddenly grabbed by her wrist by her partner. She was about to reprimand him when she saw the eerie green in his eyes, not the normal green, but the possessed green.

The cat hero then started fighting his spotted partner. "Snap out of it, Chat Noir, it's me!" Ladybug only got more punches as an answer.

 _This can't go on like that!_ Bloodhound thought. _I gotta do something… but what? Come on, think… think… think…_ _ ***gasp***_ _Brain Blast!_

The dog heroine jumped onto the cat hero and wrapped her arms and legs around him. The sudden weight caused Chat to let go of Ladybug and try to throw off whatever clung to his back. With all her strength, Bloodhound threw her struggling teammate onto his stomach and hooked his left arm behind his back, pinning him to the ground.

"Lass, grab the akuma!" she called out to her partner, only for Chat to somehow overpower her and roll them over, straddling her to the ground.

"Cataclysm!" His right hand bubbled with destructive energy as it sunk onto her face.

"Paws off, kitty!/Get away from her!"

It seemed Chloé was about to get her chance to shine, but Ryan beat her to it and quite literally pulled Chat Noir off of Bloodhound and tossed him over to the nearby sofa! The sofa instantly disintegrated from the Cataclysm.

"Hey! No fair!" Chloé called out annoyed. "I wanted to help!"

Ryan ignored her in order to check up on the dog heroine. She seemed a bit shaken from the near-Cataclysm experience, but could anyone blame her? No one knew what a Cataclysm did to a living creature, and no one really wanted to know.

"Are you okay, Hound?" Ryan asked her in the most gentle voice Bloodhound has ever heard. It caused her to blush involuntary.

 _Is there ever a time when he_ isn't _a sweet and caring angel?_

"Uh huh…" she lost-thoughtedly replied and nodded. If Ryan noticed her dreamy look, he didn't seem to acknowledge it and gave a bright smile in return.

In that moment, Ladybug finally decided to use her summoning superpower, and the object revealed itself to be…

"... a fork?"

Simultaneously, Chat had seemingly recovered from his crash and started chasing Ladybug. The red heroine in turn started making her way towards the rooftop to escape the cat hero, and Ryan was about to rush and help them, but got shoved out of the way by none other than Chloé.

Bloodhound, being the only witness, could only scoff and roll her eyes. She helped Ryan up and told him to stay downstairs with the others.

"Oh, by the way," she smiled. "Thank you. For saving my life back there."

Ryan's face exploded in a bright red. Too elated to answer, he chuckled and scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

And even as the dog heroine disappeared upstairs, the grin never left his face. When Bruce saw it, he facepalmed.

"I caaaaaaan't…"

* * *

Ladybug rushed upstairs, looking for clues on how to use the Lucky Charm.

Despair Bear, a nearby umbrella table, her yo-yo and the fork lightened up and an idea was born.

Ladybug nodded to herself, and Chat Noir just reached the roof and began sparring with Ladybug, trying to get her Miraculous.

"ALRIGHT, THAT'S IT!" Bloodhound's voice thundered across the rooftop, having arrived just mere seconds ago. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU, YOU LITTLE BASTARD!" She pulled out her bat and charged furiously at the teddy bear, and right at the last moment, it let go of Chat - unfortunately, Bloodhound didn't take that into account and ended up tossing the cat hero over the roof!

"WAAAAAH!"

"Oops," the dog heroine murmured sheepishly, flinching when a quiet crash was heard from down below. She went to the edge of the roof and gazed over it. "Are you okay, Blacky?"

"MY LEG!"

"Two versus one now, ladies." The girls turned around to see Despair Bear _right near Bloodhound_! Before anyone could react, the akuma grabbed onto her leg and took control of the dog heroine!

 _Oh, for god's sake!_

Before Bloodhound quite got the chance to attack Ladybug, the latter quickly attached her yo-yo to the akuma's head and tied the string around the fork before throwing it towards the umbrella table, securing it onto one of the beams.

"Chloé, would you be so kind?" the red heroine called out as her partner started attacking her relentlessly with her bat.

Chloé, who had arrived at the rooftop earlier, saluted and started spinning the umbrella table, pulling off the thread from Despair Bear's body as well, until only the head remained.

Because Despair Bear lost his grip due to this, Bloodhound came about.

"Wha? Lass? What happened?"

"Oh, you know," Ladybug shrugged. "just saving your skin with the help of our new little sidekick."

Chloé smiled smugly… and Bloodhound once again resisted the urge to facepalm.

Suddenly, her dog ears acknowledged squeaky noises from down below, and she chuckled in amusement at the sight of a little man kicking her boot. She gently picked him up by the scruff of his suit. "So you're Despair Bear, huh?"

"Give me your Miraculous! You haven't defeated me yet!"

Bloodhound simply laughed. "Wow, you are freaking scary. No joke." She then turned to her spotted partner. "Do us the favor, Lass?"

Ladybug nodded and ripped the thread off the teddy bear's head, watching the evil butterfly flutter out. "No more evil-doing for you, little akuma." She opened her yo-yo and spun it wildly. "Time to de-evilize!" Throwing the tool at the akuma, she caught it with ease. "Gotcha!"

"Bye bye, little butterfly." Ladybug cooed at the purified insect before throwing the fork into the air. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

With all that said and done, everything got repaired and Despair Bear transformed back into Chloé's butler… in Bloodhound's arms.

"GAH! DAMNIT!"

Ladybug giggled. She then walked over to Chloé.

"Thanks for the help, Chloé," she said, handing the girl back her teddy bear. "It was really nice of you."

"I know, wasn't it?" the blonde replied smugly. Ladybug smiled in slight exasperation while Bloodhound facepalmed this time.

"Will you ever change?" she inaudibly spat.

Chat then jumped up and landed on the roof, feeling better from the cure. Needless to say… he looked pretty mad.

"What the hell, Bloodhound?! Who gave you the right to toss me off the damn roof?!"

Said girl held her arms up in defense. "Woah, easy there, Blacky! It was an accident, I swear!"

"An _accident_?!" Chat exclaimed aggravated. "So you "accidentally" threw me off the roof? Is that your statement?"

"I wanted to hit the akuma, not you!" Bloodhound countered. "How was I to know he would detach himself from you _last second_?"

"Just admit it! You did it on purpose!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did–"

"SHUT UP!"

Their yelling stopped abruptly. The two heroes turned their head to see an annoyed Chloé glaring at them.

"You two are bickering like preschoolers! Just accept that it was an accident from Bloodhound's side! And even so, she didn't think it through! You're both right and wrong, both of you! Okay?!"

The Miraculous trio was surprised by the blonde's outburst. Rather, not the outburst itself, but rather _why_ she had an outburst. Who would have known Chloé would ever attempt to play mediator?

"Mademoiselle, I apologise for interrupting, but I must confess, I don't remember anything." Chloé's butler commented.

Chloé smirked. "Well, basically, you turned evil and I saved you. In fact, without me, Ladybug, Chat Noir and Bloodhound would never have succeeded." She turned to the trio with a smug smile. "I'm even better than you superheroes. I don't even need a costume."

"No, no, no, no, no…" Bloodhound stated. "Just… no." _And we're back to square one._

 _Beep beep beep!_

"Uh oh, time's up!" Chat fretted. "Gotta get going!"

"Me too!" Ladybug added, then yo-yoed away, and Chat vaulted away as well.

Since Bloodhound didn't have to use her superpower, she wasn't in such a hurry. But nevertheless, the party was practically over, so she had no reason to stay any longer. With a salute, she jumped away from the hotel's rooftop and headed home.

* * *

"Bark off." She whispered as she landed close to the front door. She then headed inside and up to her apartment door. She entered quietly, as everyone else was sleeping.

With a quick change, Alexa then headed to her room for a good night's sleep. She flopped down on the bed, ready for some shuteye, when her phone suddenly rang.

She groaned in annoyance and stood up to answer it. Her eyes widened as she saw who was calling. _Ryan_.

Her cheeks heated up as she answered the call. "Hey Ryan, how goes it?"

 _Aced it!_

" _Hey Alex, where did you go? Not long before Bloodhound appeared, you vanished! Is everything alright?_ "

Alexa froze up. _He noticed?!_ "Oh, uh… w-well, I, er, was needed at home! I-I promised my dad to help out with… programming! Bu-but it slipped my head, so, uh, I had tooo… slip away! Yeah! Hehe…"

 _Damnit! There goes my normalness!_

" _Hey, no sweat. I get it, family obligations and stuff._ " he reassured her. " _It's too bad you didn't see Bloodhound though! Like, she was sooo…_ "

He seemed to trail off…

"Sooo… what?" Alexa inquired. Her curiosity sense was tingling like crazy. She just _had_ to know what her crush thought about her alter-ego!

 _There's something about the way he speaks about me-err, Bloodhound. But what is it?_

" _Er, uh, sh-she was great! Yeah! The way she handled the akuma with ease! It was awesome!_ " Ryan answered a bit too quickly…

Alexa frowned. Ryan was slowly starting to worry her a bit. He seemed so nervous when talking about her alter-ego.

"Ryan… you seem a bit nervous. Is everything okay?" she couldn't help it, her curiosity was getting the better of her.

" _I'm… I'm fine. Really. What about you? Are things going alright?_ "

 _He's trying to change the subject. Meh, I'm too tired to think about this anyway…_

"Yeah, more or less. I was just about to hit the hay, you know?"

" _O-oh, I'm sorry! Should… should I have not called?_ "

"No no, it's okay," she reassured him. "I'm actually glad you called."

" _Really? Why is that?_ "

"Because…" she hesitated a bit. Should she enlighten him with her dilemma? Or was it too early? "Because it shows me that you care. You care enough about me to call me, to wonder about my whereabouts and my wellbeing. And… I'm really glad we're friends."

Alexa didn't know, but on the other side, Ryan smiled warmly and actually blushed a little.

" _Of course. I care about you a lot, Alexa. You're such an amazing friend. And can I just say… for someone who was so scared to do it, you're a pretty good dancer!_ "

The brunette blushed at the praise. "I guess I just found my perfect partner, that's all."

A few seconds passed before she realized what she had just said. Her face exploded in heat. "NO, WAIT! THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT! I MEAN, JUST THAT I FELT AT EASE WHEN DANCING WITH YOU! NOT THAT YOU ARE A BAD PARTNER! THAT'S NOT IT AT ALL!"

Ryan burst out in mirthful laughter on the other side. " _It's okay, girl,_ " he quickly said before she could assume the worst. " _I'm glad you consider me such a good dancing partner. Who knows? Maybe we could dance some more some time. Would… you be up for that?_ "

At these words, Alexa felt her heart skipping a few beats and a warmness spread through her whole body.

 _Should I? Should I not? Holy moly, he did not just propose we dance some more! This is so amazing!_

" _Alex? Are you still there?_ "

"Yeah, I am. Sorry." she apologized, grinning like an idiot. "I would love to, honestly. Perhaps you could teach me to dance properly before prom arrives?"

Ryan grinned on the other side. " _Definitely. How about we take our first dancing class in… four days?_ "

"You got it."

" _Great! Sooo… I guess I'll see you tomorrow?_ "

"Yeah, sure. Have a good night, Ryan."

" _Thanks. Sweet dreams, Alex._ "

And with that, the phone call ended. Alexa placed the phone on her bedside desk, then flopped down onto her bed and sighed happily.

Yapp then flew next to her and smirked. "So…" he started. "Dancing lessons with Ryan, huh? And here I thought you were pretty insecure about dancing…"

"Oh shut up, will ya." Alexa said playfully, causing the kwami to chuckle. "What about you? You seemed pretty quiet today, even for you."

The dog kwami actually flinched a bit at that. "Could we… perhaps discuss this another day?" he tried. "Today was a long day and I need some sleep."

Alexa wasn't buying it. "Not a fan of crowded places, are you, buddy?"

Yapp fidgeted a bit. "That obvious?"

The brunette shrugged. "Me neither. Never was. I know that feeling, so don't be ashamed." she reached out to him and lightly scratched him behind his ears, smiling when he started to pant happily. He leaned into her touch, tail wagging.

Alexa could only let out a little giggle from the dog kwami's actions.

 _God, I freaking love him. I'm never letting him go,_ ever _._

"I think it's time we get some shuteye." Alexa said, as she gradually stopped.

Yapp instantly mourned the loss of her finger on his head, but then yawned loudly. "Yeah, I guess you're right," He flew up to his chosen and gave her cheek a hug. "Goodnight, Alex."

She returned the hug happily. "Goodnight, buddy."

Yapp then flew back to his cherry pit pillow and immediately dozed off. Alexa followed not long after.

All in all, today had been quite a successful day in Alexa's book.

* * *

 **A/N: Not much originality here, but still a good bunch of. Not as long as Dragonfist, but close enough. All in all, I'm satisfied :)**

 **Alright, now that this is out of the way, I need a break. Not to relax, but there's a bunch of stuff from my personal life that need to be done. And that's top priority right now!**

 **Next chapter will be a fictitious one. Dunno when it'll be done, but for now, enjoy what you have ;)**

 **As always, reviews are greatly appreciated, and remember:**

 **Stay cool and so long!**


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